The Government of Guyana yesterday condemned harassment being faced by local fishermen at the hands of the Surinamese authorities.
In a strongly worded statement, Georgetown called on Paramaribo not to go back on its promise to issue 150 SK licences to Guyanese fishermen for Surinamese waters and to provide an update as it relates to the licences.
“The Government of Guyana condemns, in its strongest possible terms, the most recent harassment being meted out to our Guyanese fisherfolk by the Surinamese government, inclusive of its failure to grant licenses to our fishermen in keeping with a commitment made to His Excellency, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana on 26 November 2020, during a visit to Suriname,” the statement from the government said.
“In the absence of the issuance of these licences, our fisherfolk continue to face harassment at the hands of the Surinamese authorities, including fishing vessels that are stranded in Suriname and cannot return to Guyana for fear of losing their licences,” the statement added.
Back in August last year, President Ali at a joint press conference alongside Surinamese President Chandrikapersad Santokhi said “I’m pleased at the conclusion of discussions between the Ministers of Agriculture, and we have found a way forward in relation to the granting of licences by Suriname to our fisherfolk and this would be in effect from January next year, and this is because that is the period that the licences are normally granted.”
He added “There were some allegations and we asked the fishermen to give us the info in relation to the licensing so we had a back and forward with that that impeded the finalization of this issue but we have come to a solution. We have come to a solution at this meeting and once the information set is handed over to the Minister of Agriculture … in the new licensing phase the licence will be issued in relation to the quota that was already determined”.
The licensing of local fisherfolk was to be done in keeping with the established quota set out by the Surinamese. Under the agreement, Suriname had agreed to licence 150 fishing vessels.
The Guyana Government statement yesterday noted that during an official visit to Suriname in November, 2020, Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha met with Suriname Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Parmanand Sewdien and requested the issuance of the licences to allow Guyanese fishermen to ply their trade in Suriname waters.
During that meeting, the statement said Mustapha recalled the earlier discussions between Ali and Santokhi that there should be an agreement on the issuance of the licences requested by Guyana.
Sewdien, the statement said, also indicated that his government would form a company that would deal with the issuing of licences to the Guyanese fishermen.
“Taking into account this decision, the Minister of Agriculture of Guyana communicated the names of the persons interested in being issued licenses via a letter dated 16 November 2021 to his Surinamese counterpart,” the statement said.
“To date, the Government of Guyana has not been advised on the status of the establishment of the company referred to, nor on the issuances of the licenses,” it added.
As the deal remains in limbo, Corentyne fishermen have been complaining bitterly.
For years now, Guyanese fishermen have been renting fishing licences from Surinamese for their boats. One licence would cost around US$3000 per year for one boat. However, some fishermen previously reported to Stabroek News that some Surinamese have since increased the price to US$4500 per boat.
Guyana had made representation to Suriname to have the licences issued directly to the Guyanese fishermen since the Surinamese who are obtaining the licences are not fishing but are buying them with the sole purpose of renting to Guyanese to make a profit.
Fisherfolk had raised the issue with Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo when he visited Skeldon, Upper Corentyne in April. Jagdeo had told the fishermen that it seems a group of persons in Suriname does not want to see the issue resolved “because they are benefiting from this so they are fighting to prevent the issue from being solved.”
He had pledged that Guyana’s Government would continue to make representation to see the licences issued while noting that they have made representation at the highest level in Suriname.
The statement yesterday by Guyana reflects a sudden deterioration in ties between the two governments after congenial exchange visits by President Ali and Suriname’s President to each other’s countries.
There has also been a flurry of cross-border visits by ministers and a MoU for the building of a bridge over the Corentyne River. For decades local fishermen have been harassed by the Surinamese authorities.
