The tragic incident in which two Guyanese women – Ashrani Hardat, whose lifeless body was found floating in the Corentyne River and Cheryl Peters, whose body is still missing – died after the boat in which they were travelling from Guyana to Suriname capsized in the Corentyne River, is not just another river mishap. Rather, it is the unhappy consequence of the customary pattern of institutional blindness to the needs of public safety, disdain for legality, disregard for international norms of travel and safety, and official blundering.
Every Guyanese citizen is entitled to enjoy the protection of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs when travelling to a foreign country. Equally, on home soil, she must enjoy the protection of the various law enforcement arms and immigration services of the Ministry of Home Affairs. This is especially so when, as in the case of a trader, she is required to pay fees to an agency of the Ministry of Finance as duty on her goods.
Lives have been lost and, although the latest tragedy did not begin or end in no man’s land, no ministry has come forward to accept responsibility for the mistakes and malpractices that led to it. Should the Immigration Service of the Ministry of Home Affairs and should the Customs & Trade Administration of the Ministry of Finance condone illegal business in broad daylight? Few expect that there will be an inquiry by the Guyana Government into the circumstances surrounding these deaths. Fewer still expect the Ministries of Home Affairs and Finance to act decisively to eradicate the illegal practice of backtracking.
According to reports, the boat in which several passengers were crossing the Corentyne River last Friday left the landing at Number 78 Village for Nickerie, Suriname, when the propeller became ensnared in a fishing seine causing it to capsize. As a result, at least two women died, others were injured and all lost their goods.
Several questions arise. The first is whether any Government of Guyana officials are aware of the practices, persons and places involved in the illegal trade and transport activity known as ‘backtracking.’ The second is whether No. 78 Village is an authorised port of departure and whether travellers are required to comply with normal departure procedures therefrom. The third is whether vessels are licensed, seaworthy and suitable for transporting passengers on the river. The fourth is whether the captains of the craft were trained and certified, vessels were subject to safety standards, and required to carry lifesaving and emergency communication equipment.
There are many more questions and the answers to them are common knowledge on the Corentyne Coast – the national centre of contraband trade, irregular travel and maritime piracy.
Passengers on the MV Canawaima, the registered international vessel that plies the river from the official port at Moleson Creek to Suriname, complain of the long check-in period, the high fee for the passage, and the discomfort of travelling on the road to Nickerie which the Suriname authorities are in no hurry to repair. It is known, too, that the unlicensed little boats have no lifejackets and radio.
The ‘backtracking’ business is nothing less than organised crime. It is a byword for trafficking in people, narcotics, guns and assorted goods. For the Government to continue to tolerate this illegal international traffic, it would be a dangerous dereliction of duty. It is worse than an administrative blunder. If the Minister of Home Affairs acknowledges the illegality of this practice, he has the reason, resources and responsibility to stop it.