President of the Suriname Seafood Association (SSA), Udo Karg, says he is against the government providing licenses to Guyanese fishermen amid complaints of overfishing.
Over the weekend, President Chandrikapersad Santokhi told reporters that a fisheries agreement with Guyana is soon to be realized similar to those that already exist with other countries, including Venezuela.
Karg said he is surprised at the announcement by President Santokhi, saying “if we want to conclude a fisheries agreement with Guyana, then we can prepare about 2,500 licenses for CARICOM because then we have to allow all member states to fish in our waters”.
The two Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries are at loggerheads over the issuance of licenses with Georgetown claiming that Paramaribo had promised 150 permits last August during President Santokhi’s working visit to Guyana.
But this has been denied by President Santokhi who said he is unaware of the 150 permits story.
Fisherfolk, plying their trade in Suriname’s waters, have been complaining about constant harassment since they are not licensed to fish in the country’s territory. Some fisherfolk said they were also renting at high costs, licenses that were issued to Surinamese.
Ali said he had spoken to his Surinamese counterpart and his Foreign Affairs Minister Albert Ramdin and was promised “some statistics” to show the number of licenses issued to Guyanese fishermen.
“Minister Ramdin claimed that a high percentage of licenses issued by the Surinamese authority was issued to Guyanese, so I am waiting for that.,” Ali said, adding that the Surinamese leader has also assured that the remaining issues will be resolved soon.
“We are not wavering on our position that we must have a resolution of this issue,” Ali said, adding that Guyana has always been welcoming to investors in all sectors, specifically from neighboring Suriname.
The Federation of Surinamese Agrarians (FSA) is also against issuing fishing licenses directly to fishermen in Guyana.
In a statement, the FSA said that under Article 8 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas which governs the CARICOM Treaty, fishermen from Guyana cannot receive preferential treatment from Suriname.
It said nevertheless, Guyana is exerting pressure on Surinamese to circumvent these rules so that Guyanese fishermen can be accommodated by Paramaribo.
The FSA further states that the Surinamese Sea Fisheries Act allows foreign vessels, which are willing to undergo inspection and adhere to the conditions, to present themselves for registration in Suriname.
CMC/
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