“If it wasn’t an act of aggression then what kind of action was it?” government spokes-man Dr. Roger Luncheon asked in response to Suri-namese ambassador Manorma Soeknandan’s assertions defending the recent seizure of a Guyanese vessel in the Corentyne River last week.
Soeknandan has said that the action by the authorities was merely Suriname protecting its maritime boundaries but Luncheon in response to questions during his post-cabinet media briefing yesterday said government’s position is frank in finding the Dutch-speaking territory’s action as unacceptable, an act of provocation and one of aggression.
However he acknowledged that there was a border commission to which these matters could be sent but pointed out that the history of such a mechanism in similar circumstances would have to be examined.
“These are mechanisms but we have to be careful to examine how they have worked in the past and if we are to do this we could get a good sense of what has come out of previous matters,” he said.
He pointed out too that the commission has been unable to conclusively resolve matters and an evident example was the resort to the international tribunal on the law of the sea in the case of the recently resolved dispute between Guyana and Suriname.
Meanwhile, the Alliance For Change has offered its support for sound decisions from government on the matter. However party leader Raphael Trotman said he felt Foreign Affairs Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett should not be writing letters in the press in answer to newspaper columnists. He was referring to a letter from the minister published in yesterday’s edition of Stabroek News in which she argued that there was no agreement recognizing Suriname’s sovereignty over the Corentyne River.
“The minister should not be writing letters in the press in answer to a nameless and tasteless columnist as Peeping Tom. The lines are drawn – what the people of Guyana expect are decisive actions that tell us that Guyana will be taking steps to protect its territorial integrity and establish its position on the river,” Trotman emphasized.
He said he hopes that the letter writing was over since the people of Guyana already know what the position is on the international laws.
The Guyanese vessel, the MV Lady Chandra was seized on the Corentyne River while it was on its way to Skeldon to transport bulk sugar for export. According to Soeknandan the vessel was not seized by the military but by the maritime authority. She said that the military was in no way involved, but the police merely escorted the maritime officials while they were transporting the Guyanese vessel.
According to her too this was an agreement that was in existence since 1981 and it also applied to Surinamese vessels.
She also told reporters recently that once the vessel, even if it is owned by a Surinamese, exceeds a certain tonnage it requires a Surinamese pilot, according to Surinamese regulations.
The MV Chandra boat captain was placed in the lock-ups and the other six crew members were left on board the vessel. The vessel and its crew were eventually released after the payment of a fine of US$400.
