President David Granger, today, accredited His Excellency, John Pilbeam as the new non-resident High Commissioner of the Commonwealth of Australia to Guyana. The new High Commissioner is based in Trinidad and Tobago.
In presenting his Letters of Credence to the President, Mr. Pilbeam spoke of the friendly and fruitful diplomatic relations that Guyana and Australia share for over 40 years. The First Australian High Commissioner presented his credentials in Guyana in April 1974.
According to Mr. Pilbeam, sport, particularly cricket, is the bedrock of the relations between the two nations; noting that legendary Guyanese players such as Mr. Clive Lloyd, Mr. Lance Gibbs, Mr. Rohan Kanhai, Mr. Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Mr. Ramnaresh Sarwan all have strong fan bases in Australia.
“Guyana is the first place in which I have presented credentials outside of Port of Spain and I have to admit that the plans of the Australian cricket team to visit for a week in June, play a large part in that decision. A large number of Australian cricket fans will also be visiting Guyana then and we need to prepare with your Government for that,” the High Commissioner said.
However, quite apart from cricket, Guyana has benefited significantly from its relations with Australia, particularly in the areas of capacity building, scholarships and joint-aid programmes.
Meanwhile, similar sentiments were expressed by President Granger, who said that diplomatic relations between the two countries have deepened Guyana’s membership in the Commonwealth of Nations, of which Australia is a founding member.
He added that with Mr. Pilbeam’s appointment, Guyana envisages increased collaboration between the two countries at the multilateral level; pointing out that there is much scope for cooperation, particularly within the context of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the 2015 Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Accelerated Modalities of Action also called the Samoa Pathway.
The Commonwealth has been an important voice in the global community, it has championed democracy and human rights and it has highlighted the plight of small states. Australia, commendably, has used its experience and standing within the Commonwealth to call attention to the concerns of small states.
The High Commissioner neglected to mention Australia’s mistreatment of its aboriginal people and its brutal immigration system wherein refugees and asylum seekers are forced into brutal detention camps on the South Pacific island of Nauru. In fact, just a few weeks ago, a baby that was born in mainland Australia was sent right back to the camp directly from the hospital after its mother had given birth.
What is Granger and Greenidge doing other than waxing poetic and being patronising to the Aussies. Next thing we hear, they got the Aussies to donate free mutton, milk-powder, cheese and butter for the ’50th Anniversary of Independence Celebrations’.