Over the past year there has been significant success in combatting illegal fishing in the region and the United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) will continue to lobby for support from nations in its zone as it believes that while the numbers have decreased, the illegal activity will continue, SOUTHCOM Commander, General Laura Richardson says.
“I think there has been huge success. A year to a year and a half ago we weren’t even talking about IUUF [Unreported and Unregulated fishing]. What the hemisphere has done to counter IUUF? We have partnered with the SOUTHCOM. We are just a piece of the whole thing that the hemisphere has done to combat IUUF,” General Richardson told Stabroek News in an exclusive interview during her recent visit for the 2023 Tradewinds exercise.
In January 2021, a defence partnership agreement was signed between Guyana and the United States and it was expected to ensure increased safeguards against illegal fishing in this country’s waters. Speaking at a joint press conference following the signing of the acquisition and cross-servicing agreement to strengthen the US and Guyana’s security cooperation in logistics, repair and supplies, as well as trade in goods and services, then Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Chief of Staff Brigadier Godfrey Bess had said that the majority of vessels involved in illegal fishing in Guyana’s waters originated in Venezuela and Suriname. Also present was then SOUTHCOM Commander, Admiral Craig Faller, who had noted that as part of collaborative efforts with the Coast Guard here under Operation Southern Cross, a joint exercise to deal with illegal fishing, had been recently carried out.
‘Strategy’
The following month, Washington said that the partnership between it and Georgetown to combat illegal fishing had seen a positive start and the US would continue to pursue regional cooperation as had been seen in Operation Southern Cross.
“Our strategy, I think, is very straightforward, as I outlined, and we hope that countries will join us in that strategy,” Atlantic Area Commander of the US Coast Guard Vice Admiral Steven Poulin had told a Department of State telephonic regional press conference. He had been asked by Stabroek News how the US would help this country in combatting the problem, given complaints by local fisherfolk of bullying by Venezuelans in this country’s waters.
“… We got off to a great start with Guyana, and that is to continue to strengthen our partnerships to expand the awareness of the issues globally, to continue to have that persistent exchange of information, and to look to conduct joint operations in the future with all of our partners to get after this very real and serious problem,” he added.
Poulin and acting Director of the Office of Marine Conservation at the US State Department David Hogan were at the time fielding questions from reporters across the region, on the US government’s efforts and regional cooperation, including the recent Operation Southern Cross, to counter IUUF in the Western Hemisphere.
United States Coast Guard (USCG) vessel USCGC Stone, had in 2020, embarked from its base in Pascagoula, Mississippi, on a multi-month deployment to the South Atlantic with countering illegal fishing as part of its mission.
According to a USCG statement, the brand-new legend-class national security cutter, one of the USCG’s flagships, was to provide a presence and support national security objectives throughout the Atlantic under the umbrella of Operation Southern Cross.
Guyanese fisherfolk often complain of illegal fishers, especially from Venezuela, in this country’s waters and that there are insufficient resources locally to combat the problem. .
‘Invincible’
SOUTHCOM’s commander informed that much work has been done to see the decrease in numbers while emphasizing that it was not to the credit of any single entity but through strong collaboration with partner nations and other stakeholders.
“We have partnered with academia, such as FIU [Florida International University, University of Miami, Global Fishing Watch] … an advocate for this and being able to expose that malign activity, sharing that information with partner nations and then all of us you see, when we all work individually, we are strong but together we are invincible, and we can counter this malign activity. This is why I think we, in the western hemisphere, have been very successful, but we have more to go because it is not going to stop,” Richardson said.
Global Fishing Watch (GFW) is a website launched in September 2016 by Google in partnership with Oceana and SkyTruth to provide the world’s first global view of commercial fishing activities.
“Global Fishing Watch seeks to advance ocean governance through increased transparency of human activity at sea. By creating and publicly sharing map visualizations, data and analysis tools, we enable scientific research and drive a transformation in how we manage our ocean,” GFW’s website states.
“We generate new knowledge by using cutting-edge technology to turn big data into actionable information. We share that information publicly, and for free, to accelerate science and drive fairer, smarter policies and practices that reward good behavior and protect biodiversity, fisheries and livelihoods. By 2030, we aim to monitor and visualize the impact of ocean-going vessels, both industrial and small-scale, that are responsible for the vast majority of the global seafood catch,” it added
Meanwhile, General Richardson who arrived here on the 26th and had talks with GDF Chief of Staff Brigadier Omar Khan on the US-Guyana defence partnership, also met Ambassador Sarah-Ann Lynch to discuss the US defence partnership with Guyana and the Caribbean Community (Caricom). It was during the bilateral meeting with the GDF that Khan and Richardson signed the Human Rights Framework, committing their organisations to “human rights engagement, cooperation and integration.”
The SOUTHCOM General had also met with Caricom Secretary General Dr Carla Natalie Barnett to discuss regional security, including cybersecurity and climate change.
‘Rigorous process’
In her address at the Tradewinds closing ceremony, Richardson had stressed that “strong multinational partnerships that span the globe not only reflect an enduring promise to one-another, but also to democracy – or what I like to call Team Democracy.”
Emphasising on interoperability, she said that collectively more will be achieved. “We are working on security cooperation and being able to see. We all struggle with domain awareness on the maritime and the air [front]. We all want to see more so we can counter the malign activity. So yes, we are working on that.”
Asked if SOUTHCOM had surplus equipment to share with nations such as Guyana, she replied, “I wish there was! I wish I had a surplus warehouse of equipment but, no. We work on initiatives and we work very hard on justifying and providing the justification for why that is important for our partner nations in the region, and I communicate that to my boss, Secretary Austin [US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin]… and our congress.
“Our congress is the one that appropriates the funding for me and the projects. When I go to [Washington] DC – I go a couple times a month – I go to the Pentagon and I go to Capitol Hill and I have constant communication of the very important projects and things that our partner nations need in the hemisphere. I communicate that so I can get the resources to be able to fund that. It is a very rigorous process.”
