Corentyne ‘backtrack’ operator bemoans police harassment

Jun 15, 2014 News

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By Leon Suseran
Hundreds are utilizing the Guyana-Suriname ‘Backtrack’ crossings available in the Upper Corentyne area. Last week at Number 78 Village, Corriverton, one of the operators said that the backtrack business continues to flourish despite the establishment of the Guyana-Suriname Moleson Creek Ferry Terminal, a few miles further up the Corentyne.

Prior to the introduction of the ferry service, persons from both countries used makeshift stellings at Springlands where immigration officials were present and the area was designated the official port of entry/leaving Guyana.
Passengers opt for a faster, more expedient and hassle-free way of getting across to Guyana’s Dutch neighbour. They use the speedboats as opposed to the established ferry crossing.
Today, there are currently three backtrack crossings on the Corentyne side and four on the Nickerie, Suriname side. And each crossing on the Guyana side now has a Customs officer from the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) who monitors the outflow and inflow of items. There are three officers that work on the landing Kaieteur News visited.
Mr. Mohamed Mursaline, proprietor of ‘Golden Gloves Speedboat Service’, goes by the catch-phrase plastered on the walls of his residence, ‘We can take you anywhere on the Corentyne River.’ It has been a family business for over 40 years, he stated, having taken the reins from his father.
He said that he is fully licenced by the Surinamese authorities to operate the backtrack service.
The problem, he stated, is with the Guyana side and this country’s unwillingness to formally legalize the operations. He has 26 workers under his employ, including boat captains, sailors, and mechanics. “I seek a lot of employment for people, and they are willing to pay their taxes.”

“THE POLICE IS THE PROBLEM”
One of the major problems for the backtrack service, he added, is the constant harassment by the police upon incoming passengers. “They coming to pull people out of the boat and wanting to carry them down to the station. They stopping passengers on the road and collecting monies as they come through the backtrack.”
“This is the Corentyne River. And Guyanese are legal to use this [river] but if a person goes into the river and comes back, they still give them a hard time…they demanding monies from the passengers—illegal entry.
“The biggest harassment is not with anyone concerning government or so. We put several matters to them [the government] already, but no answer. The police are the problem!”
“The customs officer has the power to pass a man with a bottle or two of liquor. Normally people buy liquor through the duty-free; the police take away the people liquor, demanding money from the people,” he stated.
He operates several trips on a daily basis at $2,000 per person. However, pensioners can travel for free or at a reduced cost. Mursaline says it’s not all about the money. Safety is guaranteed, he added, in that passengers are required to wear their life-jackets and every boat carries a double engine, in the event that one engine fails during the 15-20 minute journey.
“I never had a disaster. Disasters happened one or two times but not here—on the other landings.”

LICENCES & LEGALISE
Mursaline added that the licences are issued on an annual basis. “You carry your boat, with your number and boat names. I have four boats and captains with sailors.”

Mursaline said that he spoke to officials including former President Bharrat Jagdeo to legalize the operations many years ago. “When Jagdeo was in government, he said let them work but for as long as the PPP in government, they won’t legalize it.”
He claimed that Minister Robert Persaud also negated any attempt to legalize the operation. “They waiting on the Corentyne-Suriname bridge. I don’t know when that bridge will finish. If the bridge build we will still operate,” he noted.
“We don’t have a problem with customs or government officials…the police are the main persons—they target passengers as soon as they reach from the road.”
Passengers who use the backtrack service, he added, and enter Nickerie, cannot go past Coronie and head into the capital of Paramaribo, due to the fact that Dutch law enforcement officers monitor the inflow of persons into the capital.
Persons are asked to produce their passports and are asked to return to Nickerie should they not have an immigrant stamp out of Guyana. This poses no problem, Mursaline added. “They are not locking you up—they just turn you back.”
However, a lot of Guyanese who utilize the backtrack route, he added, have immigration documents that can allow them entry into the capital city. “Once you have legal papers, you can utilize this track –there are over 40, 000 Guyanese living in Nickerie who have papers.”
These documents are issued every couple months.
Over the years, the backtrack debacle has been an issue that raises its head every now and again. Many persons have been clamouring for Guyana to fully recognize the service and make it a legal port of exit and entry for Guyana, since it provides a faster and more economical means of travel for persons.
The Government of Guyana has from time to time stated its unwillingness to regularise the backtrack service, while its Surinamese counterparts have always had the desire to make both sides legal ports of entries.
In 2010, the Guyana Government declined a proposal by Suriname’s Justice Minister, Chandrikapersaud Santokhi, to regulate the backtrack service.  The Guyana Government declined the invitation and only promised further discussions on the matter.
Many persons have utilised the backtrack operation to smuggle drugs and contraband materials in and out of Guyana. It should also be noted that criminals also use the route.

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