Fishermen say — ‘Walk on water like Jesus Christ or die’

Fishermen in Icacos  have felt the fear of sea piracy over the years and it has now taken a toll to the point where most fishermen are seriously considering whether they should still go out to the sea in their boats. For them, making a living has become highly dangerous. They are pleading with government to allow them to have guns to protect themselves or give them permits to allow them to fish in Venezuelan waters, since there is almost nothing for them to catch in local waters. Without protection, they see only a grim future. One fisherman, summing up the sentiments of the others said: “Our only hope is to walk on water like Jesus Christ, or die.” They complained that large trawlers were sweeping up all the fish, shrimp and prawns, leaving the ordinary fisherman with nothing to harvest for sale.

Sunday Newsday was on the scene to witness the much resented trawlers at work. Last weekend’s episode on the high seas was just one of many incidents which have occurred when a pirate attack caused the death of a fisherman. Icacos fisherman Rupert Bissoon, 55, drowned in the sea off the Venezuelan coast, when he and two other fishermen were hijacked by pirates and ordered to jump into the sea. He had given up his life-jacket to save the lives of the other fishermen who clung unto the jacket until they were rescued seven hours later by another fisherman, Premchan Harricharan.

A masked gunman and two “Spanish-looking” men pointed guns at the fishermen and told them to jump. A relative of the Bissoon family, Lalit, said they seized two boats, trawling nets, two Yamaha engines and fish bins. It was one of the several incidents of sea piracy which have occurred over the years, affecting fishermen all over the country, including areas such as Las Cuevas, Maracas, La Fillete, Cedros, Erin, Icacos and Moruga. Within a six-year period, there have been over ten incidents of piracy on the high seas against TT fishermen. A recent Newsday article reported that in the year 2003, there were three reports of robberies at sea, in which  crew members on fishing vessels were robbed of their engines, fuel and fish. For the year 2004, there have been three more incidents of piracy, including the recent one at Icacos.

Late last year in September, Moruga fishermen were seriously affected by a spate of pirate attacks as they ventured close to Venezuelan waters. They were tied up, robbed, beaten and left for dead and over $150,000 in boat and equipment stolen. They all tell similar sinister tales of being approached with guns by Spanish-speaking men, who eventually steal their boats and/or equipment. However, there is one major difference. In the past, more of the attacks took place in the night. Now they are happening in broad daylight, with the intention of killing the fishermen before they speed off with their stolen equipment.

Icacos
The idyllic village of Icacos is about an hour and a half’s drive from Point Fortin. The scenery is beautiful and breathtaking, with the sight of hundreds of towering coconut trees on either side of the road, caressing one’s presence. Now and again, the glittering water of pristine, unspoilt lagoons can be seen, the odd Scarlet Ibis picks up a low flight and the squeaks of distant birds only add to peaceful serenity. Further down, about a mile from Fullerton Village, Icacos comes into full view; well-built modern homes mixed with a few country-styled wooden houses. A resident said just about 500 people live in the area, most of whom depend on the coconut and fishing industry for a living.

Taxi-driver Jackoon Ramdhanie, who has lived there all his life said: “Everybody know everybody here.” The fishermen in the village were friendly and willing to tell their tales and experiences with piracy on the high seas. A large group of them were hanging out under the shade of a broken down building, listless dogs scratching the fleas away from their ears. Oli Mohammed, 63, has been fishing for the past 50 years, had his first serious encounter with pirates about five years ago. Mohammed, who was with two people at the time, was thrown overboard by gunpoint. “They leave me in the sea and I swim to the Venezuelan Coast by the Guarahoon tribe. They took me to the Guardia Nacional (Venezuelan Coast guard) and they sent me back home,” he said.

Bertie Serrette, 54, was seriously wounded in his encounter about three years ago and his sea mate, Derek Cooper, died as a result of chop wounds. Serrette said they were slacking a fish net into the water when they heard a boat coming towards them. When they realised the men on board were pirates, the fishermen sped off, but the pirates fired gun shots after  them. As soon as they were accosted, both Serrette and Cooper were dealt chops about the body. Serrette said he stayed in deep sea waters from 1.30 to 8.30 am, his bullet and chop wounds bleeding profusely. “I was scared, I thought I would die. I did not encounter sharks but I felt a porpoise under my feet,” he recalled. He said when he was rescued, he heard that his friend  died from the chop wounds.

“They are not just attacking us in Venezuelan waters now but in TT waters too,” he said, “and they are killing us.” The younger fishermen nodded in agreement. Told that there were rumours that they were taking chances to go to Venezuela to engage in illegal activities, one young fisherman asked in anger: “Who tell you that, the police?” Indeed, fishermen in TT, not just in Icacos, feel that their livelihood is under threat. “We try to take weapons such as knives, cutlass, or guns in order to protect ourselves, but the police seize them. “So, if we have nothing to protect ourselves with and the Coast Guard are not around, then we are in serious danger but the government don’t care about us,” said another fisherman.

The Coast Guard have said they cannot help the fishermen once they are in Venezuelan waters. “We have to take a chance. There is nothing for us to catch in our waters so we have to go further out,” said one man, known as “Sharkhead.” His colleague, Bobby, added: “If the Coast Guard can’t help us, then we have no government.” Denver Beharry, 28, who was one of the men affected in last weekend’s episode, was the captain of the boat “Sandra.” “When the boat approached us, it looked like an ordinary boat. We did not know they were pirates,” he said. Beharry said his colleague, Rupert Bissoon, gave up his life-jacket because it was choking him. The younger fishermen, like Beharry, feel there is no hope for them. One resident lamented the future for young people in the area.

The village itself is underdeveloped, beside fishing, there is the St Andrew’s Estate, which employs only about ten  people, mostly women, who crack and cut open the coconuts. He noted that youths were graduating from High School with several distinctions in O’ and A’ levels, only to end up in the fishing or coconut industry, or move out of the village to find more lucrative jobs. “Fishing not so hot here again, when you do go fishing, you’re taking a chance with your life out there. The government don’t care about us down here,” said Neris Soomaie.

Coast Guard — No new
radar system yet —
“But we are doing our best”
Commander of Operations, Lieutenant Mark Williams disclosed that the new radar, which had been promised to the Coast Guard to monitor illegal activities, has not yet been installed. However, he said they are continuing to do their best with the resources they currently have.
In September, following attacks on Moruga fishermen by sea pirates, Prime Minister Patrick Manning had promised that a new radar system would be purchased to provide a 350 degree coverage of the nation’s coastlines. About two weeks ago, Minister of National Security, Martin Joseph, said government will soon acquire two additional vessels to complement its fleet, which will be used to curtail piracy on the high seas and to prevent illegal fishing in territorial waters.

He said this is in addition to the nine patrol boats and two air-craft to do the 24-hour patrol. Lt Williams said beside working with their current resources, they are also trying to improve their relationship with Venezuela so when incidents occur, there will be better dialogue. He agreed that their inability to go into Venezuelan waters to help TT fishermen, is a barrier to  improving the problem of sea piracy. “The sea piracy problem is of great concern, but in time, I believe we will be able to make the waters a safe haven for our fishermen,” he said. He pointed out that it was very easy for everyone to blame the Coast Guard, but noted that they could not deal with the problem if people were hiding information from them.
“We are therefore asking people to co-operate with us, even fishermen, to ensure that the serial numbers of their boats are in order so we will be able to have better relations with Venezuela where our operations are concerned,” he said.

Venezuelan Ambassador agrees to speak with TT on sea piracy
Venezuelan Ambassador to TT, Hector Azocar, said he was concerned about the increasing number of piracy attacks against fishermen in this country and has agreed to meet with the relevant authorities to try and work out the problems. Azocar was speaking with Sunday Newsday last week when he noted that while some fishermen were innocently attacked, there were others who engage in illegal activities. “So the situation is very complicated, but this is one problem we have to address,” he said. Azocar disclosed that there was currently a bi-lateral Commission between Venezuela and TT, but lamented that it had not met for quite some time now. He said he was also aware that a number of the piracy incidents against TT fishermen have not been reported to the Venezuelan authorities and indicated there was a need to have more co-operation between the TT and Venezuelan Coast Guard.

He said because of all the issues involved, the matter would require several discussions. “But we are willing and prepared to have all the issues addressed and make requests and suggestions,” said  Azocar. Told that most of the fishermen were concerned about trawlers which were raking up all of the fishing resources in TT waters and was one of the reasons why they were going into Venezuelan waters, he pointed out that in his country there is a new Coastline Act which establishes a six-mile limitation in which the trawlers are allowed to fish. He said this had become necessary in order to preserve its marine resources. However, Azocar said there is a similar problem in the Gulf of Paria and felt that the Commission needed to have discussions about that issue as well.