Months after the Government of Guyana condemned Surinamese authorities for the harassment of the country’s fishermen, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo directed another condemnation at the Dutch speaking nation, this time at its Minister of Agriculture, Parmanand Sewdien.
During his press conference today, Jagdeo referred to Sewdien as a “shady character,” in whom he lacks faith. He also highlighted the Minister’s handling of the ongoing fish licensing issue, stating that, “Suriname and some of the Ministers, especially the Minister of Agriculture, the one there. I do not have any faith in him. He’s a shady character, with what he did with the fishermen licences.”
The fishing licences row has been ongoing between the two countries since September of last year after the Government of Guyana issued a strongly worded condemnation of the treatment of Guyanese fisherfolk by Suriname authorities. The country had committed to President Irfaan Ali since November 2020 to issue fishing licences to 150 Guyanese fisherfolks.
Following discussions between Guyana’s Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha, and Sewdien, an agreement was supposed to be put in place by January of last year, as the names of Guyanese fishermen to be granted licenses were already submitted since November 2021. This promise has not materialized to date, and Guyanese fishermen are still being harassed by Suriname authorities.
It was also alleged in the past that strides were made to have Suriname issue the licences directly to the Guyanese fishermen since the Surinamese who are obtaining the licences are not fishing but are buying them with the sole purpose of renting them to Guyanese to make a profit.
Additionally, the matter was brought to Jagdeo’s attention during his visit to Skeldon last year, where he allegedly stated to the fishermen that “a group of individuals” in Suriname appear to be obstructing a resolution to the issue. “They are doing this because they are benefiting from (it) so they are fighting to prevent the issue from being solved,” Jagdeo had said.
