Dear Editor
The visit to Guyana by US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, was a major success. The US is a global power, and at one time the Monroe Doctrine was the pillar of American policy in this region. The collapse of the USSR put Monroe on the back burner. But China’s Belt and Road Initiative has given Washington cause and occasion to rekindle aspects of one of its oldest strategic doctrines. What about Guyana? Stabroek News appears to be upset that President Ali acknowledged China as a development partner, and as a country with common values. Now, while the point on democracy is understood, there are numerous historical and contemporary things that Guyana shares with the Chinese.
Stabroek News must refresh its memory that Chinese indentured servants arrived here since the 1850s. But more than that, Guyana and China have had an enduring sense of South-South cooperation. It appears that the Moray House elitists cannot handle the fact that President Ali was forthright in his statement that while American businesses had ignored us, the Chinese were here fully engaged. Guyana is not a little pip-squeak, and it should not behave like one! Mr. Blinken’s stopover here could not have gone unnoticed by Beijing. In my own view that is for the two Great Powers to work out. Another matter of high politics concerned Venezuela. On this score, something rather dramatic happened.
The Secretary of State of the United States of America called for free and fair election while on Guyanese soil. That is of immense importance from the performative side of things. More than anything else Mr. Blinken’s Venezuela statement had two immediate effects, namely (1) it categorically affirmed Guyana as a true democracy; and (b) it sent a message to Venezuela that the US and Guyana have shared interests at the level of national and regional security. Think about it, President Ali was in Trinidad and the two of them no doubt interacted. So why bother to come down to Georgetown? The short answer is that the trip was simply a signaling event.
Sincerely,
Dr. Randolph Persaud
