Food aid again for villages along the Saramaccarivier; authorities call for structural solution

The aid was provided from Thursday 1 through Saturday 3 October via the Bureau Volkscontacten (Public Relations Office). Village representatives welcome the support, but stress that a structural solution is needed to enable residents to provide for their own livelihoods again.

The packages were compiled by the company Chotelal. The Transport Department of the Ministry of Defence handled transport to Saramacca. Creola, Grankreek, Maho and Columbia were visited on Friday 2 October.

In Creola, 50 food packages were distributed. Claire Leming, a member of the village’s executive committee, pointed out that many residents depend on hunting, fishing and subsistence plots. According to her, other villages along the river also need the water for their daily lives. She called on those involved in the pollution to take the communities into account. “Do not pollute that water, because we really need it.”

Limited opportunities to work

In Grankreek, 157 families received a food package. Kapitein Angelique Palmtak stressed the importance of entrepreneurship and opportunities to earn an independent income. According to her, fishers are unable to fish because of the situation, while activities such as planting and hunting are also limited. She hopes for a swift solution and continued support from the government.

In the Indigenous village of Maho, 58 families received food packages. In addition, 100 trays of drinking water were provided. Basja Guiliano Zaalman stated that the consequences extend beyond fishing and hunting. Potters, medicine men and residents who make traditional handicrafts are also affected, according to him.

Maho received food packages and drinking water for the second time. The village authority stressed that the aid is appreciated, but that the emergency situation calls for a permanent solution. Residents must be able to work and engage in business to support their families and send their children to school.

Columbia requests financial support for fishers

Kapitein Rodney Sandel of Columbia calls the food aid a positive signal from the government, but believes additional support is needed. According to him, residents were partly dependent on the fish catch for both their food and income. Now that they cannot consume or sell fish from the river, an important source of food and income has been lost.

Obtaining meat and fish from other villages is not financially viable for residents, according to Sandel. He therefore advocates financial support for fishers. He also asks for clarity on when fish from the Saramacca River can once again be safely eaten and sold. In Columbia, 121 families received a food package.

On Thursday 1 October, a total of 280 food packages and 108 trays of water were provided in Pikin Poika, Santigron, Brooklyn, Totikamp, Haarlem and Pikin Maisi. This was followed on Saturday 3 October by 210 packages in Pikin Saron, six in Broferi, 83 in Bigi Poika and 40 packages in Tibiti.