Although the brazen daylight attacks on poor fishermen in the estuary of the Berbice River and off the Corentyne Coast last month do not satisfy the internationally accepted definition of 'maritime piracy', the effects on the victims would be no different no matter by what name the crime is called.
Maritime piracy is usually taken to mean "violent seizure on the high seas of a private ship, or the illegal detainment of persons in property aboard said ship for the purpose of private gain." In Guyana, however, the violence has not been on the high seas but in territorial waters. Despite location and motivation, the violent seizure of the fishing boats and private gain of the robbers have been real enough.
Over and over, groups of artisanal fishermen in small wooden boats powered by outboard engines, often within sight of land, and with the most rudimentary equipment, have been pounced on by gangs of criminals with fast boats and assault rifles. Occasionally, the fishermen are robbed of their few valuable possessions but, more frequently, their outboard engines have been taken away.
These attacks are no less than the waterborne variation of the land-based banditry that Guyana has witnessed along the coastland, albeit without the aggravation, rapes and murders. Unlike the crimes on land, however, there has been no pretence of a credible official response from the law enforcement agencies. Major arrests and prosecutions have yet to be made.
Despite the fact that all police divisions are based in riverine or coastal areas which necessitate water transport for efficient prevention, detection, and investigation of crime, the marine police is almost non-existent. As a result, fishermen think that it is a waste of time to complain to the police who seem to have neither the ability nor the attitude to leave dry land.
Recently, a spate of letters in this newspaper discussed the capabilities and role of the Guyana Defence Force Coast Guard. Although the Coast Guard has a law enforcement obligation, it does not have the capacity to conduct surveillance along Guyana's 430 km coastline and has been unable to curtail coastal 'piracy'.
The fishermen have called on the Ministry of Fisheries to establish a permanent Coast Guard base on the Corentyne Coast to provide some protection for their activities and rapid response in the event of attacks. But these wishes are unlikely to be fulfilled unless the Administration takes a more serious approach to the entire question of maritime security. There has been no response from the Ministry of Home Affairs, responsible for public safety.
Although officials frequently complain about the deleterious effects of fuel smuggling, narco-trafficking, gun-running and assorted contraband activities on the national economy, official responses have not moved much beyond the establishment of the Berbice Anti-Smuggling Squad (BASS).
Official inertia also extends to the lack of coordination among public and private agencies to exercise efficient control over our ports, harbours and coastline. Not only the Guyana Defence Force Coast Guard, but also the Guyana Police Force; Customs & Trade Administration; Fisheries Department; Shipping Association; Transport & Harbours Department; the newly-formed Maritime Administration Department and the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission with regard to petroleum exploration, need to be brought together to plan for the long-term safety of persons legitimately using our rivers and coast and the security of commercial and other activities there.
Just as banditry on the coastland needs to be stamped out, so also must piracy in our rivers and coastal waters.