Latest update February 6th, 2025 7:27 AM
Venezuela releases Guyanese fishermen – expected to arrive in Georgetown Friday
the detained Guyanese fishing Vessels released yesterday
Minister of Foreign Affairs Hugh Todd
Kaieteur News – The 12 Guyanese fishermen who were detained by the Venezuelan military on January 21, along with their respective fishing vessels, Sea Wolf and Lady Nayera, will finally return home.
This is according to Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hugh Todd, who told Kaieteur News last evening that the men and their vessels have been released earlier in the day.
He revealed that the men will depart Port Guiria, Venezuela, this morning and are expected to arrive in Georgetown on Friday.
The fishermen’s release has come after Guyana supported by the international community which included Caricom, the Organization of American States (OAS), Canada, among others, called for their immediate release.
The Venezuela Foreign Affairs Minister Jorge Arreaza
The Venezuela Navy Comandante Hugo Chavez GC 24 had illegally detained the men in Guyana’s waters which is part of the Essequibo territory that Venezuela wants to claim.
The men were at the time fishing in Guyana’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) just off the coast of Waini Point.
The Guyana Government had promised that it will take a path of diplomacy to negotiate immediate release of the abducted fishermen; on January 26 that the Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza promised to pursue the early release of the crew. It took Arreaza seven days to finally keep his word by releasing the men his country had illegally detained.
The detention of the fishermen and their vessels came after aggressive moves and statements were made by the Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his regime regarding the territorial controversy over the Essequibo, Guyana’s largest county.
The matter has been brought before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), where it ruled on December 18, 2020 that it has jurisdiction to resolve the issue. Guyana’s argument is that, it has sovereign rights over the coast and land territory because it was awarded to the then British Guiana in the 1899 Arbitral Award.
Since the ruling, Maduro has been on the offensive on all fronts. His move of aggression has since been condemned by the international community and Guyana who called on him to obey the rule of law.
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