Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan is suggesting putting firearms into the hands of fishers going out to sea as one measure to reduce high-seas piracy.
His comments were made Saturday at the Number 66 Fishermen’s Co-op Complex where he met with fisher folk to discuss piracy and other issues affecting the industry.
The visit to Corentyne comes on the heels of an attack on 15 fishers by five pirates between 27 and 28 May last. The attack left one fisher; Hemchand Sookdeo, 45, of Number 55 Village, dead and three others missing: Dochan Sukra, 54, also called ’Butcher’ of Number 55 Village, Dhanpaul Ramphal of Number 67 Village, and Munish Churman, 26, also called ‘Boyo’ of Number 60 Village.
During the attack, the captain of the boat the missing men were in, Seepersaud Persaud, 43, of Corriverton, was thrown overboard five miles offshore but was rescued by other fishers after swimming for some three hours.
Minister Ramjattan, addressing the more than one hundred persons in the industry, said firearms might help to solve the problem: “I did make the statement when I first became a Minister and we had the bad round of piracy last year, that I want people, if it is possible for them whenever they go out to catch their fish, they can go out with a firearm, allowed by the nearest police station.”
He said the firearm will be uplifted before the fishers leave for sea and returned as soon as they return to shore.
However that suggestion was again met with opposition. One fisher noted that his son went out with a licensed firearm and it was taken away by the Surinamese.
Most of the waters Corentyne fishers use to fish are considered Suriname territory.
According to Ramjattan, negotiations are currently taking place between the two countries to iron out some of the issues surrounding fishing in waters belonging to Suriname and in close proximity to Guyana.
Most of the fishers have obtained licences from Suriname to fish in the foreign waters allowing them to ply their trade hassle free.
When this was told to the minister, he urged the fishers to seek protection from Suriname police: “You are using Suriname licence to fish in Suriname waters then you need to go to the Suriname police and ask them to protect you.”
Ramjattan noted that his government had suggested communication sets be used by fishers while out at sea, but the suggestion when put to the fishing community, was shot down. “When I made the suggestion, a lot of people went to members of the opposition saying that we want to take away most of your monies. They want us to give free radios but we can’t do that, we don’t have the money to do that.”
Ramjattan said too many lives and property are being lost due to piracy. “What is the value of a life as against putting up a $300,000 radio system?” He asked.
According to him, government will be looking to make it compulsory that persons going to sea to fish are equipped with a radio system.
Minister Ramjattan said there is need for more stringent registration processes in the fishing industry.
He also suggested that there must be proper documentation of persons who are going out to sea and in which boat they are going.
“We feel that one of the solutions lies with better communities; communities that live and also communities that are going to ensure that they give the information to the law enforcers so that we will be able to have this thing solved. And that we can know up front who might be the ones that will turn out to be bad boys…We have to start doing all of these things rather than sometimes pass the blame on to somebody else, like the police or government” Ramjattan outlined.
Ten days after fishers came under attack by five pirates on the Corentyne River, three remain missing. However with very little chance of finding the men alive, the focus of the search is expected to concentrate on the recovery of bodies as from today.
Commander of Berbice Police, Assistant Commissioner Ian Amsterdam made that disclosure on Saturday when he along with Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan met with fisher folk at the Co-op Complex.
Amsterdam said that with assistance from Suriname and the Guyana Defence Force using their ‘metal sharks’ (sophisticated military boats) they have carried out extensive searches for the men who are feared drowned.
He noted that the services of divers may be employed as he vowed to find the men even if they are under the muddy Corentyne River water.
Meanwhile, Sookdeo was laid to rest yesterday at the Number 51 Cemetery.
