Nickerie.Net, donderdag 03 mei 2018


‘Aanval op Surinaamse vissersboten was wraakactie voor dood piratenkapitein’

Door Katinka Kleeveld - 3 mei 2018 Foto: Politie.sr

De brute aanval van een Guyanese roverbende op Surinaamse vissersboten zou een gerichte wraakactie zijn geweest. Enkele weken geleden werd de Guyanese kapitein van de roversbende, genaamd ‘Paddy’, doodgeschoten tijdens een aanval op vissersboten. De piraten houden de vissers hier verantwoordelijk voor. Dit meldt de Guyanese krant Kaieteur News.

Licentie

Er zou al langer een vete aan de gang zijn tussen verschillende groepen vissers. “Guyanese vissers huren licenties van Surinaamse vissers om te gaan vissen. En geregeld wordt er ook illegaal, zonder licentie, gevist”, zegt een Guyanese visser. Hij zegt ook dat de vermiste slachtoffers wel in Suriname woonachtig moeten zijn, omdat hun boten niet in het gebied vissen waar de aanval heeft plaatsgevonden.

De Guyanese vissers, vaak woonachtig in Suriname, voorzien de Surinaamse markt van vis om hun families te eten te kunnen geven.

Communicatie

Opvallend is dat de Guyanese media hier pas dinsdag over schreef, terwijl de aanval vrijdag al plaatsvond. Hieruit blijkt dat er een groot gebrek is aan coördinatie tussen Suriname en Guyana. Bronnen melden aan DAGonline dat deze aanval voorkomen had kunnen worden als er tijdig gecommuniceerd was tussen beide landen.

Lichamen

Op dit moment worden er nog zestien vissers vermist. Vandaag maakte Starnieuws bekend dat er ter hoogte van de Wia Wia Bank meerdere lichamen zijn gesignaleerd door piloten van de luchtvaartmaatschappij Gum Air. Door het hoogstaande water konden de autoriteiten de lijken echter nog niet bergen en identificeren. Hiertoe zal alsnog spoedig tot worden overgegaan.

Kolonel Jerry Slijngaard van het Nationaal Coördinatie Centrum voor Rampenbeheersing (NCCR) en de Kustwacht melden dat er vanmiddag ook twee lijken zijn aangespoeld te Weg naar Zee. De NOS sprak met enkele familieleden van vermiste vissers.


Guyanese visser: ‘Hij kwam op de boot en zei iedereen gaat dood’

Door Jason Mollante - 1 mei 2018

Voor de kust van Suriname zijn vrijdagavond vier vissersboten overvallen door een Guyanese roversbende. Enkele vissers liepen kapverwondingen op. De meeste vissers werden overboord gegooid. Sommige met een batterij aan hun been. Er worden nog steeds zestien vissers vermist. Een Guyanese visser en een aangedane vader doen voor het eerst hun verhaal voor de camera.

De Guyanese visser die de brute roofoverval overleefde.

Kappartij

“De rovers kwamen op de boot en zeiden iedereen gaat dood. Ze begonnen mij overal te kappen, op mijn hand, hoofd en been. Toen gooiden ze mij in het water. Wij waren met zijn vijven. Ik was de enige die de kust kon bereiken. Ik heb geen idee wat er met de overige gebeurd is. Ik denk dat er al twee in de boot zijn overleden. Zij werden ernstig gekapt” aldus een van de Guyanese vissers die de brute aanval overleefde.

De piraten zouden bewapend zijn met een jachtgeweer, bamboestokken en kapmessen.

Autoriteiten

De Guyanese visser zegt dat de schuld ook bij de Surinaamse autoriteiten gezocht moet worden. “De regering doet hier niets aan. Dit is al zoveel jaren aan de gang. Wij betalen geld voor licenties, maar voor wat? De politie gaat niet ver genoeg de wateren in. Zij moeten elk boot checken en weten wie er op zit.”

Vermiste zoon

Een man, wiens zoon zich ook op een van de boten bevond, is zwaar aangeslagen en kan zijn tranen niet bedwingen voor de camera. “Ik bid tot God dat alles goed mag komen. Mijn zoon was ook op de boot. Ik heb van de kapitein begrepen dat hij met een batterij om zijn been in zee is gedumpt. Neem de vissen, neem alles, maar waarom moet je hen doden? Gisteren heeft hij mij nog gebeld en gesproken met zijn drie zonen 3, 4 en 5 jaar.”

Zoekactie

De kans is klein dat de zestien vermisten het drama hebben overleefd, zegt Mark Lall van de belangenvereniging Visserijcollectief tegen de NOS. “We zijn met familieleden van de vissers nog steeds aan het zoeken, hopend op een wonder.” Ook de Surinaamse kustwacht is bezig met een grootscheepse zoekactie.

Sinds de overval zijn er geen vissersschepen meer zijn uitgevaren, uit angst voor nieuwe overvallen.

UPDATE 01-05-2018, 15:43 uur: De Surinaamse nieuwswebsite Waterkant.net meldt zojuist dat de zoekacties zijn stopgezet. Er zou geen hoop meer zijn op overlevenden.


Four bodies recovered

Guyanachronicle.com

 By Nafeeza Yahya - May 2, 2018

…as Suriname intensifies search for missing fishermen

WITH the recovery of four bodies believed to be those of the missing fishermen in Friday’s piracy attack, relatives of the other missing men are growing more and more uneasy with less hope of finding their loved ones alive. The bodies were spotted within 30 miles from Zorg-en-Hoop, an area off the Wia Wia bank by an airline pilot attached to Suriname domestic carrier, Gumair Airlines. The information was radio-ed in to the ground crew and the bodies were retrieved. Up to press time, efforts were being made to bring the bodies to shore as relatives waited anxiously.

So far Guyana Chronicle has been able to confirm the names of nine of the 16 persons who went missing after the attack. They are Vickey Persaud, 23; Ramesh Sanchara, 51; Glenroy Jones, 20; Tilaknauth Mohabir, 50; Randy Burnette, 19; Bobby Ibrahim; Bharat Heralall; Ganesh Persaud, 27, of Number 2 Village, East Canje, Berbice, and his cousin, Ralph Anthony Couchman, 19, also of Number 2 Village, East Canje. The body that was retrieved earlier in the day, Wednesday, has been positively identified by relatives as that of Ganesh Persaud, 27 of Number 2 Village, East Canje and a father of two.

According to his sister, Yurajwattie Hussein called “Yonette”, her brother joined the fishing industry from the age of 13, initially patching seins and doing odd work. At age 14 he left Guyana and went to neighbouring Suriname to work on fishing boats, initially earning just US$20 per trip. In January this year, he turned 27. He has two children–Devin and Jayon–ages 5 and 2 respectively.

A meal of fish curry

Like most fishermen, he would spend a few months out at sea and then return to Guyana to spend some time. He had left for Suriname in January and was scheduled to return after he would have completed this trip; he never made it home. According to information from Hussein, the piracy attack on her brother’s boat would have occurred sometime after midnight on Friday as he called his wife, Kavita, around then and told her he was about to go cook a “catfish” he had just caught. “When them find the boat, the engine did damage and the boat had thick, thick blood. Them find the catfish curry and vermicelli what he tell she he did cooking”, the grieving sister related.

His body was positively identified by relatives while arrangements are being made to bring the others to shore and have them identified. Meanwhile, the relatives of Ralph Anthony Coachman said they believe he did not survive the attack, since he was on the same boat as his cousin, Ganesh Persaud, and are hoping to retrieve his body to bring closure and give him a “proper send off.” The family is planning to travel to Suriname as soon as they can get their Yellow Fever vaccines. Couchman left with Persaud in January in search of a better life. Among the persons planning to make the trip is his 75-year-old grandmother who shared a special bond with him. According to Radica Ramnarace–a cousin–the grandmother has been ill since the incident and wants to be able to “send off” (bury) her grandson herself and is adamant she is going to Suriname.

Still hoping for a word

Additionally, Kuntie Bishop, mother of Bobby Ibrahim, said she is still to get word from her son, whom she said is among the sixteen missing fishermen. In a Facebook post, Bishop is pleading with anyone with information to assist her in locating her son. The post states: ”Help me find Bobby Ibrahim, he was among the fishermen who was attacked by pirates in Suriname on Friday. I am his mother”. According to a source in Suriname, the aerial search was conducted privately by the airline to help the relatives of victims find their missing loved ones in what has been described as the most gruesome and largest pirate attack within recent times.

De Ware Tijd newspaper reported that Jerry Slijnagard , Director of the National Coordination Centre for Disaster Management in Suriname reported that assistance from Guyana is now being considered. He said too that the Surinamese authorities have contacted their counterparts in French Guiana for assistance since Friday night’s attack occurred closer to the maritime boundary between the two countries.” They have been asked to help find the robbers on the French side, because information about this exists and we have shared this information with them,” Slijnard said.

Suriname’s Justice Minister, Stuart Getrouw stated on Tuesday afternoon that the search for the missing men has not stopped. He also promised that better protection of fishermen in Suriname waters is on the cards. Relatives of the missing fishermen, most of whom are Guyanese, continue to be critical of the attention given by the Surinamese authorities thus far to the gruesome incident. The search was reportedly called off on Monday, but due to intense pressure from relatives and heightened regional publicity, the exercise reconvened and several private companies, such as Gumair, have joined forces to help locate the missing fishermen.

Suriname media reports stated on Wednesday that of the 16 missing men, four may be of Surinamese nationality. On Wednesday evening, families, relatives and fishermen waited at the dock where the fishermen usually depart and lit candles and said prayers as they await word. The pirate attack on Friday has left relatives fearing the worst. The men were reportedly chopped about their bodies, struck with bamboos and other objects to get them to comply with the demands of the criminals as their boats were looted. Still after complying, the men were tied to anchors, batteries and other heavy objects and thrown overboard as their boats were destroyed.

PPP concerned

The People’s Progressive Party (PPP) in a statement said it remains gravely concerned about the matter involving the fate of the 16 fishermen who have been reported missing after an attack off the coast of Suriname. “This is a tragedy and we empathize with the families who continue to be in anguish, given the state of affairs. The horror that reportedly unfolded once again highlights the danger that our country’s fisherfolk face every day to earn their livelihoods and to provide for their families,” the PPP said. The party calls on the government to make every effort and take urgent steps to ensure that fishermen are found. “In addition, our party urges the government to ensure that the families are kept informed of the efforts being made. We hope for a swift resolution of the situation and that the families can be comforted during their time of distress. “

Bron/Copyright:
Nickerie.Net / Dagonline / NOS / Guyanachronicle.com 03-05-2018

 

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