A stand for justice will be mounted this morning (Saturday 24th February, 2024) in remembrance of those who perished in the Paria diving tragedy.
Sunday officially marks the second anniversary of the accident.
The Paria Platform – A Call for Justice, will take the form of a procession, beginning near the Couva Magistrate’s Court at 8.30 am and, ending at the Couva South Grounds, Camden Road.
A rally will be held on the grounds where a platform has been created to discuss critical concerns still surrounding the tragedy, including the lack of compensation for the survivors of the dead divers.
Lone survivor Christopher Boodram, will be among the speakers.
Boodram who was injured and has not worked, since his friends, Fyzal Kurban, Yusuf Henry, Kazim Ali Jr and Rishi Nagassar perished in an undersea pipeline.
Boodram and the other divers were employed with Land and Marine Contracting Services Ltd (LMCS) owned by Kazim Ali Sr, and were contracted by Paria Fuel Trading Company to carry out subsea maintenance on Paria’s Sealine No 36 at Berth No 6 in the Pointe-a-Pierre harbour.
Couva South MP, Rudranath Indarsingh, one of the organisers of Saturday’s event said, “Is a walk for justice in the name of poor management, lack of worker’s protection and apathetic interests in the lives of the working class.
“It is named after the company where the victims of the tragedy were employed and met their preventable end, but also to provide a platform for transformative justice for the families of the divers.”
On Sunday morning, some family members will go back out to sea to place flowers where the incident occurred.
At Plaisance Park, at 6 pm on Sunday, the families will end the day with a candlelight vigil in memory of the fallen divers.