Guyana's President Names Five-Member Commission of Inquiry Into MV Barima Disaster
GEORGETOWN, Guyana – President Irfaan Ali on Sunday announced a five-member Commission of Inquiry (COI) to investigate the sinking of the MV Barima, one of the deadliest maritime disasters in Guyana’s history.
The commission will be chaired by Belizean jurist Justice Godfrey P. Smith and includes regional and international experts in maritime operations, marine engineering and maritime law.
The other commissioners are Captain Hamada Fouda of Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago attorney Nyree Dawn Alfonso, Rear Admiral (Ret’d) Hayden Pritchard of Trinidad and Tobago, and Polish forensic naval architect and marine engineer Dr. Andrzej Jasionowski.
Smith currently serves as CARICOM’s High-Level Representative on Law and Criminal Justice and is also an ad hoc Justice of Appeal in the Eastern Caribbean. He previously served on Guyana’s Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the 2020 General and Regional Elections.
Fouda is a senior maritime surveyor and compliance auditor with the Maritime Authority of Jamaica, while Alfonso is an attorney specializing in admiralty and maritime law.
Rear Admiral Pritchard is the former Chief of Defence Staff of the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force and brings decades of experience in maritime security and military operations.
Dr. Jasionowski is an internationally recognized forensic naval architect and marine engineer who has advised on investigations into several major maritime incidents.
Announcing the commission on Sunday, Ali said its mandate will be to establish the full circumstances surrounding the tragedy.
“The terms of reference of the Commission of Inquiry will be establishing the full circumstances surrounding the tragedy, including the causes and all other factors relating to the loading of the vessel, the boarding of passengers, conditions onboard, the capsizing and sinking of the MV Barima and any other related matters,” the President said.
The commission will also examine the adequacy and effectiveness of the search, rescue and recovery operations, determine whether existing maritime laws, regulations, standards and operating procedures were followed, and assess whether negligence, misconduct, dereliction of duty or institutional failures contributed to the disaster.
In addition, the inquiry will review the vessel’s seaworthiness, maintenance history and the competence of its crew.
President Ali said the commission will also be tasked with recommending legislative, regulatory, institutional and operational reforms aimed at strengthening maritime safety, improving emergency response systems and preventing similar tragedies in the future.
The announcement comes in the wake of the MV Barima disaster, which claimed dozens of lives and triggered widespread calls for an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the sinking
