Suriname’s law is that country’s business

Oct 26, 2008 Peeping Tom

The other day it was the Economic Partnership Agreement. Today it is Suriname, and nobody knows what it will be tomorrow, except that Guyana is prepared for anything that comes its way.
Suriname seized a vessel bound for Skeldon to pick up a load of sugar. Suriname’s Ambassador, Manorma Soeknandan, later claimed that the vessel was more than 50 gross tonnes and therefore needed to be piloted by someone from the Suriname Maritime Command.
Her contention is that all boats, be they Guyanese, Surinamese, or of any other nationality, should be piloted by the Surinamese authority, in keeping with some law that the Suriname Government instituted in 1981.
Guyana’s contention is that any law that Suriname institutes is for that country, and cannot be applicable to Guyana. The laws are for the state.
The laws of Guyana cannot be applied to a Suriname national in Suriname; so, in the same way, a law instituted by Suriname can only be applicable to a Surinamese in that country.
For Suriname to apply that law to a Guyanese vessel and then proceed to arrest the crew for being illegal immigrants is more than demonstrating a hostile intent to this country and to the people who live here. To make matters worse, the Surinamese actually fined the owner of the vessel before releasing the crew, which the maritime authorities had taken to a jail in the neighbouring republic.
Ambassador Soeknandan claimed that the act could not have been one of aggression because the military was not involved. That is rubbish.
Over the years, Guyana has been resorting to diplomatic initiatives to solve problems, because, in keeping with the United Nations convention disputes should be resolved without the use of force.
Guyana is a firm believer in this, but when the other partner in the discussion keeps shifting the goal post, sometimes one is left to wonder whether Suriname is really keen on diplomatic solutions to problems.
Guyana’s contention is that the river which forms a natural boundary between itself and Suriname offers right of passage to vessels belonging to both countries. It is therefore strange that Suriname would seek to intercept a Guyanese vessel going about routine business.
Guyana’s Foreign Affairs Minister made a strong point when she asked rhetorically whether, should Guyana apprehend a vessel with drugs in the Corentyne River, it is required to summon the Surinamese authorities to make the arrest.
But even more strange is the fact that the ‘Lady Chandra I’ happened to be the first vessel to be detained in the Corentyne, because its captain refused to seek a pilot from the Suriname maritime department.
It boggles the mind that the Lady Chandra could have been the first vessel displacing more than 50 tonnes to traverse the river to a port on the Guyana side.
It has not escaped notice that this act of aggression occurred after the United Nations Law of the Sea tribunal handed down a ruling on the border claims by Suriname in favour of Guyana.
Someone once said that borders are meeting points for friendly neighbours, and should not be barriers. Guyana firmly believes in this, and over the years has been extending the hand of friendship to that neighbouring country. However, this most recent incident has resulted in tensions between the peoples of the two countries.
On Friday, a vessel travelling from Suriname sank in the Corentyne, and seven people are feared dead, some of them Surinamese nationals. Reporters from across the border came to Guyana to get the story from locals at the scene where some bodies were discovered. The locals chased them away.
In days gone by, the locals would have readily accommodated them and even share their homes with the so-called foreigners.
Suffice it to say that Guyana is not prepared to accept the position being adopted by Suriname at this point. However, it will continue to exhaust all diplomatic channels. President Bharrat Jagdeo has placed calls to his Surinamese counterpart, who is also a colleague in Caricom, but that call went unanswered. Neighbours with good intentions do not behave like that, so there should be no blaming the Government should this country refuse to pursue the diplomatic channels in the face of further aggression.
Skeldon is a main port for exports from Guyana. This country ships rice and sugar to overseas markets from there, and it must be understood that large vessels would, from time to time, enter the waters.
Guyana is immune from Suriname law, and the Government’s position is that vessels entering Guyana must be free to use the river.

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Suriname’s law is that country’s business

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