The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources has backed the right of Bahamian fishermen to protect themselves, while urging them not to confront foreign poachers.

V Alfred Gray said: “I still maintain that position. I don’t think that the Government is willing to consider approving fishermen carrying weapons out to sea other than a shotgun, which they are entitled to always have if they wish to have it for their protection.

“That would not be for confrontational purposes. That would be for their defense,” he added. “Everyone is entitled to a shotgun license as long as you know how to use it. That is the extent to which I will support them having any kind of ammunition, but not to confront poachers.

“I cannot support that, I do not support that and I do not expect that fishermen will go out there to confront any poachers because these poachers are generally well armed and confrontational, and any life lost is one too many. We don’t need that.”

The Bahamas Commercial Fishers Alliance (BCFA) president, Adrian LaRoda, recently told Tribune Business that Bahamian fishermen were being forced to take the law into their own hands because they were convinced that the Government is not serious about cracking down on illegal poaching.

Calling for fishermen to arm themselves, Mr LaRoda said they were “fed up” with Dominican poachers wreaking havoc on this nation’s natural resources.

He emphasised that he was not advocating a “shoot first, ask questions later approach”, but the Government appeared not to be serious about addressing fishermen’s concerns.

Mr Gray told Tribune Business that the Government was doing its best to position the Defence Force to protect this nation’s borders. “Until we are able to do that adequately, I suppose we will all have to manage our resources as best we can, but confrontations with poachers by fishermen is not advised. That is my position on that,” said Mr Gray.

The Government has moved to bolster the Defence Force by purchasing nine new vessels via a $232 million loan.

The financing from Deutsche Bank will provide $149 million to build each of the ships, and an extra $75 million to cover civil works for a total of $224 million. The remaining $8 million will accommodate any changes that may arise during the scope of the project.