Forward Guyana Movement (FGM) Leader and maritime lawyer Amanza Walton has demanded answers from the government over the salvage operation involving the sunken MV Barima, questioning why the families of victims, defence attorneys representing three accused crew members and other relevant parties were not informed before work to raise the vessel reportedly commenced.
In a strongly worded live broadcast on Wednesday, the lone FGM parliamentarian raised serious concerns about the preservation of evidence, the chain of custody and whether the authorities were complying with the legal and maritime procedures governing the recovery of a wreck.
Walton argued that the vessel is a critical piece of evidence in the anticipated murder trial of the three crew members charged in connection with the July 18 disaster. She warned that any interference with the wreck without appropriate safeguards could raise serious questions about the integrity of evidence that may be required in court.
She recalled that, while standing in solidarity with bereaved families and survivors protesting the handling of the tragedy the previous week, she had warned that salvage operations might already be underway without public knowledge.
“And I will tell you, I would not be surprised if as we protest out here, operations are happening out there, and possibly things are being removed down below. We don’t know…. If there’s nobody safeguarding that wreck. That is in no certain code. That’s the scene of a crime that is… No… what’s the chain of custody? How do we know right now that divers are in boxes there, removing things that they don’t want us to know is under.”
Her concerns intensified following confirmation that a diver involved in the salvage operation had died. The diver was subsequently identified as 66-year-old Venezuelan national Luis Martinez.
While expressing condolences to his family, Walton-Desir said his death was the reason the public became aware that the operation to raise the vessel had commenced.
“And it’s now apparent to me that if he had not died, and my condolences to his loved ones, we would not have known that operations to raise the wreck had commenced.”
She questioned why the families, who had spent more than 100 days seeking answers, had not been informed, and whether the defence attorneys for the three transport workers accused of murder and the Commission of Inquiry had received notification.
“The families, for over 100 days, we’ve been calling for… have not been notified. The defense counsel for the three accused of murder have not been notified. We don’t know if the commission of inquiry has been notified.”
Questions over maritime procedures and evidence preservation
Drawing on her professional background as a maritime lawyer, Walton questioned whether the authorities had followed the established procedures for notifying mariners when salvage operations commence.
She explained that such operations would ordinarily be accompanied by a notice to mariners, informing vessels operating in the area that recovery work is underway and providing instructions or navigational warnings to prevent interference with the operation.
However, she said her search of the relevant government website had revealed only an earlier notice concerning the wreck itself, with no subsequent notice announcing the commencement of salvage activities.
“I’ve scoured their website. Nothing. There is a notice of the wreck that they issued. It might have been notice to mariners 124, but that’s it. That is it. Nothing. So nobody has a clue what’s going on out there.”
Walton also questioned who had been appointed receiver of the wreck, noting that the position carries responsibilities under Guyana’s Shipping Act.
“Usually… There ought to be a receiver of wrecks. Who is the receiver of the wreck in this case? Because that person has a number of legal obligations under the Guyana Shipping Act that he or she has to fulfill.”
Her central concern was that the MV Barima is not simply a sunken vessel awaiting recovery but a potentially critical source of evidence in criminal proceedings. She questioned how the defence could adequately prepare its case if attorneys were unaware that salvage operations had commenced and could not monitor the handling of the wreck.
“This vessel is a key piece of evidence in what we anticipate will be the trial of these three crew that they’ve charged with murder, but their defense counsel have no clue that a key piece of evidence is being tampered with offshore, and they’ve not been notified.”
She demanded that the government disclose when the operation began, what stage it had reached and whether any part of the vessel had been disturbed.
“The government must tell us when these operations commenced, what stage these operations are at, has the hole been tampered with? Where are we in the process?”
Families still waiting for answers
The MV Barima disaster on July 18 claimed multiple lives and left grieving relatives and survivors demanding accountability and information about the circumstances surrounding the sinking. The recovery of the vessel is therefore of particular importance, not only to families hoping for answers but also to investigators and the parties involved in the criminal proceedings.
Walton said the government’s handling of the salvage operation had compounded the suffering of those affected by the tragedy.
“So this abysmal handling by the government of Guyana is just adding salt to the already bleeding wounds of Guyanese as a whole.”
She accused the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) administration of failing to demonstrate a commitment to transparency and criticised what she described as the government’s inability to fulfil basic legal obligations when citizens are seeking answers.
“They have all kinds of resources to hunt all kinds of people when they want to, but when it comes to doing the right things by the people of Guyana simply because it’s what the law requires, they have this inability to do it.”
The FGM leader ended her broadcast with an appeal for the public to demand accountability, insisting that families should not have to endure further uncertainty while the government withholds basic information about an operation involving a major piece of evidence in the tragedy.
“Come on, man, enough is enough. The government must tell us when these operations commenced, what stage these operations are at, has the hole been tampered with? Where are we in the process? These are the basic courtesies that they could extend to the grieving relatives and those who are hoping to find some, some, something from their loved ones who perished.”
She concluded:
“Oh my goodness, enough is enough, PPP government, Irfaan Ali, enough is enough. We had enough. It’s just Enough, guy. It is time for us to stand up. We have to stand up now.”
The government has not yet publicly addressed the specific questions raised by Walton concerning notification of the families and defence attorneys, the appointment of a receiver of the wreck, the chain of custody or safeguards to preserve evidence during the salvage operation.
Those questions are particularly consequential given the vessel’s potential evidential value and the need to ensure that the recovery process does not compromise the investigations or the rights of those facing criminal charges.
