Ambassador Tibisay says goodbye to SVG

As she says Happy Independence and goodbye in one, Her Excellency Tibisay Urdenata has described St Vincent and the Grenadines as a country that oozes with warmth throughout.

After over six and a half years as the Venezuelan Ambassador to St Vincent and the Grenadines, Ambassador Tibisay will be returning home in a week’s time.{{more}}

The career diplomat told SEARCHLIGHT that she thoroughly enjoyed being stationed in St Vincent and the Grenadines, and has always been taken aback by how green and lush the country is.

“For you it is only natural to have such a lush island, but that’s not normal…I am always amazed as to how green St Vincent is,” Ambassador Tibisay said.

She also applauded the spirit of the Vincentian people saying that it is her experience that Vincentians know how to make a visitor feel welcomed.

“You go the extra mile to help people who don’t belong here,” she said with a smile.

Touching on the relationship between Venezuela and St Vincent and the Grenadines, Ambassador Tibisay said that the relationship is valued, not only in St Vincent and the Grenadines but also in Venezuela.

She dismissed any notion that the relationship is not as valuable to her country as it is to this country.

She said that her government and people truly value the relationship it has with St Vincent and the Grenadines.

St Vincent and the Grenadines and Venezuela established diplomatic ties in late 1981.

The Ambassador said that it would be misguided to judge a diplomatic relationship on the basis on what each partner gets financially.

“In a state to state relationship, it is more than finance, a diplomatic relationship is not about how much you give,” she said.

And what is made of those who may be suspicious of the relationship, and may even find it is getting to close; the Ambassador said that she considers all that talk part of local politics, and stayed clear of them.

As she bids farewell, Ambassador Tibisay said that times like this is when the life of a career diplomat gets tough.

“You are glad to go back to your homeland but you also miss the friends that you made,” she said.

So what is her independence message to Vincentians? Be proud of your country and know that “St Vincent and the Grenadines has a lot to offer another state and visitors.”