Guyana and Suriname officials to meet on fishing licenses

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GEORGETOWN, Guyana– Guyana and Suriname officials are scheduled to meet later this month after Georgetown on Monday condemned “in its strongest possible terms” what it said was the most recent harassment being meted out to Guyanese fisherfolk by the Surinamese government.

President Irfaan Ali announced the plans for the meeting on Wednesday even as he acknowledged that the central sticking point is the illegal use of existing licenses granted to Surinamese fisherfolk.

“One of the issues is the rental of licenses. Licenses that are granted to Suriname fishermen are being rented to the Guyanese. That is the core of the issue,” he told reporters.

In the statement on Monday, Georgetown said that the actions are being taken against local fisherfolk even as the neighboring Dutch-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) neighbor has failed “to grant licenses to our fishermen in keeping with a commitment made to… Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali …on 26 November 2020, during a visit to Suriname”.

Ali said Guyana has since provided data, and he was pleased with efforts to address the immediate concerns about vessels being kept there.

He said a high-level meeting would be held within the next two weeks to “not only look at the current issues” of Guyanese fisherfolk being detained in Suriname but address licensing “moving forward in the long term.”

Ali said that he has personally been lobbying “key members” of Suriname’s private sector about the need for fair and equal treatment.

“We give everyone an opportunity here and that they should ensure that similar treatment is accorded to Guyanese,” he said, adding that finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh has also spoken with Suriname’s business community members.

The President hinted that Guyana might resort to specific “options” available to Guyana under the CARICOM rules, “but I won’t explore that now.”

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