US military tension keeps Toco fisherfolk at bay

Fisherfolk in the northeastern villages stretching from Salybia to Matelot say the US strikes against narco-traffickers have crippled the fishing industry for many.

Like their colleagues who fish in the Gulf of Paria and off the southwest coast in fishing villages from Icacos to Moruga, the northeast fisherfolk are scared to venture out far from land.

For many, returning to the sea feels like an increasingly dangerous gamble.

Until conditions change, the once vibrant shores of Toco, Saline Bay, and the surrounding communities will remain sparse, fisherfolk said.

The US military has killed 83 people, suspected of transporting illegal drugs, in 21 missile strikes since September 2 in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean. There are thousands of marines and naval vessels stationed in the Caribbean Sea as US contemplates further action against Venezuela, which it has accused of encouraging narco-trafficking to the US.

At the Toco Fishing Centre, the main outlet for fresh fish in the village, located less than one minute away from the Toco Police Station, the stalls were bare during a visit on November 14.

The compound was deserted and the decaying building was a playground for vermin. A place once crowded with fisherfolk offloading their catch did not even have a single seagull searching for scraps.

A short distance away, Brother Antoine, as he referred to himself, was watering his lettuce garden at the corner of Pepper Hill and the Toco Main Road, while watching over his herbal and honey shop on the opposite side of the road.

Nearby, fish vendor Nixon Kissoon, 53, and his nephew, Andrew, tried to make the best of a difficult day.

Nixon said the Coast Guard had imposed restrictions which made it "almost impossible" for deep-sea fishing for east coast fisherfolk.

Carite and kingfish are deep-water species, he said, and fishermen must travel at least seven miles offshore to catch them.

The Coast Guard, he said, ordered fisherfolk to remain within two miles from shore. If they ventured beyond that, they were at their own risk, he said.

Fishermen on the west and south coasts have also complained of a similar restriction imposed by the Coast Guard.

Nixon said the ocean off Moruga, Cedros and Erin is the heart of the nation’s carite supply. He says he has found a new line of business in transporting fish from Orange Valley fisherfolk for vendors in Manzanilla and Toco.

As he put it, “Dem fellas not going out.”

Nixon said the price of wholesale fish has gone up and vendors have raised their prices.

“Everybody has mortgage, rent and car payments to make,” he said.

“Them fellas burning more than $600 in gas every time they go out. My whole family affected. The government has to do something, subsidise us or something. A little would go a long way. Who says it's not affecting them, they well lie.”

Nixon has worked in the fish industry for 43 years. He is also the father of Orange Valley fisherman Brandon Kissoon, one of the seven fishermen killed during an attack by pirates in the Gulf of Paria on July 22, 2019.

At Saline Bay, along Galera Road, veteran fisherman Winston Miller, 63, sat in his dry-docked boat.

With 50 years of fishing experience, he was the only fisherman on the beach.

The shoreline was lined with anchored pirogue, and like the Toco Fishing Centre there was not even a scavenger bird was in sight.

“It (the military action) has everybody in a tense situation,” he said.

“I fish for kingfish, but since this thing is escalating, I'm keeping my border. It is a high-risk situation.”

By noon on November 21, most of the clothing shops, souvenir stalls, and food outlets at Saline Bay were closed.

Former MP for the area, Roger Munroe, said the Toco lighthouse which had been restored during his tenure remains closed to the public. The lighthouse is managed by both the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts and the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure's Maritime Division.

Attempts to reach Toco/Sangre Grande Regional Corporation chairman Kenwyn Phillips and Toco/Sangre Grande MP Wayne Sturge for comments were unsuccessful.