WILLEMSTAD - Fishermen from the Wacawa area in Bandabou still do not feel safe because of the Defense shooting exercises that take place in that area. The bullets from the exercises often end up in the sea, endangering the fishermen.
The angry fishermen have now offered a letter to Prime Minister Gilmar Pisas and President of Parliament Charetti America-Francisca. They want a solution in the short term to the problem that has been going on for a long time. Things went wrong in the past when an Antillean fishing boat was fired upon by the Ministry of Defense. Miraculously, there were no casualties, but the boat was severely damaged.
Last week, the Coast Guard announced that the Wacawa site would be safe for fishermen. According to the Coast Guard, fishermen are always warned when sailing near the danger zone.
Pisas thanked the fishermen for the letter during a brief meeting. The prime minister himself comes from Bandabou and the fishing world and does not understand that this problem still exists. In the course of next week he wants to sit down with the fishermen to find a solution. The Minister of Health, Environment and Nature Dorothy Pietersz-Janga has also indicated that she wants to consult with the fishermen.
In addition to the Prime Minister, the President of Parliament also says she feels the pain of the fishermen. America-Francisca wants to see if the problem can be dealt with in a meeting of parliament. She also wants the fishermen to get an appointment with the representative of the Netherlands Erwin Arkenbout.
According to Rutzen Lucas, representative of the group of fishermen, an appointment with the representative of the Netherlands is an overdue. He says that consultations have already taken place with Defense and is now calling on the government to solve the problem. If the Curaçao government does not respond, the fishermen will look for a solution at an international level. They will then go to the Dutch Parliament and authorities in the U.S., among other things.
The Dutch Ministry of Defense also received bad news in May last year. It then became clear that the Wacawa Protected Area was being used for practice without any permits being requested.