Asia Times: Guyana upsets its wealthy friend



	November 17, 1999	atimes.com

Japan

Guyana upsets its wealthy friend
By Bert Wilkinson

GEORGETOWN - Guyana and Japan have always enjoyed cordial diplomatic relations, but in recent months the Guyana government has been working hard to smooth over a situation that threatened to railroad that status quo.

''There are several issues that we have to clear up before anything moves forward,'' said Hans Barrow, Japan's representative in Guyana, denying suggestions that Japan is moving to cut Guyana from its international aid list.

It all began, it seems, when Guyana failed to support Japan in its quest for a seat on the United Nations Security Council and backed India instead, a move which clearly irked Toyko.

But observers in Guyana say Japan was expecting too much. After all, India is a fellow Commonwealth nation. Additionally, nearly half of the country's population is of East Indian descent and the governing People's Progressive Party (PPP) draws the bulk of its support from the Indian community.

More recently, Japanese officials were not impressed that the Bharrat Jagdeo administration handed over five Japanese-donated generating units to a British-Irish consortium that now owns 50 percent of the former Guyana Electricity Corporation (GEC).

The mix up over the generating units attracted significant local media coverage, with Cabinet Secretary Roger Luncheon acknowledging the mistake: ''We have sent comfort letters to the government of Japan.'' The five sets were handed over as gifts to the people of Guyana, and apparently no-one thought about consulting Japan before the machines were turned over to the asset base of a new company run by foreign managers.

The Commonwealth Development Corporation and Electricity Sector Board of Ireland (CDC-ESBI) took over management responsibility for the Guyana Power and Light Company at the beginning of October, replacing the problem-plagued GEC. The move was part of a plan by the administration to dispose of money-losing state corporations at the recommendation of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, monitoring an economic recovery program in Guyana.

The consortium has reportedly agreed with authorities on a price of $23 million to be paid over three years, a deal that irked the Trades Union Congress and some parliamentary opposition parties. The opposition parties wanted the firm to make a lump sum payment at close of negotiations, but Prime Minister Samuel Hinds has several times said that Guyana is prepared to compromise to attract the right investors.

To date, there has been no indication of a settlement of the power generator controversy, but representative Barrow has acknowledged efforts by Foreign Minister Clement Rohee and others to smooth over the situation. ''The current problems, I think, must have impacted to some degree on the relations with Japan, but we are working on it,'' said Barrow.

The New Amsterdam Hospital in Berbice, which stood to benefit from Japanese aid, is in a run-down state. The building needs overhauling as well as new equipment, officials say, so Guyana can hardly afford to anger Tokyo.

The fisheries sector is also slated for aid as it seeks to expand. In the past Guyana has benefited from millions of dollars in aid from Japan, mainly in the fisheries and agricultural sector, while Japanese trawlers have been allowed rights to fish in Guyana's waters.

(Inter Press Service)

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©1999 Asia Times Online Co., Ltd.