Guyana condemns Suriname’s harassment of Guyanese fisherfolk

GEORGETOWN, Guyana– The Guyana government is condemning “in its strongest possible terms” what it says is the most recent harassment being meted out to Guyanese fisherfolk by the Surinamese government.

In a statement issued late 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”.

According to the government statement, during that visit, Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha met with his Surinamese counterpart, Parmanand Sweden, and requested the issuance of 150 licenses which will allow Guyanese fishermen to ply their trade in Suriname Ocean waters.

Mustapha recalled the earlier discussions between Ali and President Chandrikapersaud Santokhi that there should be an agreement on issuing the number of licenses requested by Guyana.

The statement said that Sewdien also indicated that his government would form a company that would deal with the issuing of licenses to the Guyanese fishermen.

“At the last meeting of President Ali and President Santokhi in Georgetown, it was agreed that by 1 January 2022, arrangements would have been put in place to facilitate the issuance of the 150 SK licenses to 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.

“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,” the statement said.

It said in the absence of these licenses, “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 licenses.

“The government of Guyana, therefore, calls on the government of Suriname to not renege in its commitment and to make known the current position of the issuance of the licenses.”

Paramaribo has not officially responded to the statement from Georgetown.