Dear Carriacou,
We are the people held hostage in your lovely Tyrell Bay. We are American, German, French, British, and Portuguese/Cape Verdean. We came to your island to support your economy by maintaining, and in some cases rebuilding, our vessels. We hire your skilled workers, eat in your restaurants, get our laundry washed at Zip, shop in your supermarkets, buy fruit and vegetables at your friendly roadside stands, and buy lots (and lots) of boat supplies. You have seen us in the streets, and may even recognize the gray dog, Doodl, being towed behind the bicycle in her doggie carriage on the streets of Harvey Vale.
We like it here just fine — but please let us leave.
Over the weekend of April 25, a fence was built bisecting the yard in Tyrell Bay Marina. There was no warning, no communication, and no chance to put our boats back into the water before access was completely restricted. We do not take sides in the years-long land vs. lease vs. remuneration dispute — and yes, it is still legally ongoing despite the common misconception that title ownership determined in 2023 settled the whole matter. (It’s not that simple, unfortunately.) That fiasco was here long before us and will continue long after we have left, but right now that fight has taken us hostage. We live permanently on our boats, and they are our homes, our places of business, and our primary mode of transportation — we have nowhere else to go nor any way to get there.
Our detainment has, and continues to, affect our well-being, cost us employment, jeopardize our immigration status, put our property at risk, and potentially even put us physically at risk. We have lost jobs, delayed medical procedures, and canceled that once-a-year visit where we were finally able to convince our family to come to us. We lost vessels in Beryl and know the dangers of hurricane season personally. We are angry, frustrated, and bewildered hostages.
So we enter the fighting ring.
You ask what we have done to help ourselves so far? Well, we are now extremely familiar with your laws, government organizations, public services, and judicial system. We have read your Constitution and know that it is illegal for anyone to be detained against their will (Article 12 Protection of Freedom of Movement) or for property to be impounded without cause (Article 6 Protection from Deprivation of Property). We have read your Planning & Development Act 23 and know that the fence was illegally erected as it was done without authorization from the Planning & Development Authority (Part V ENFORCEMENT OF DEVELOPMENT CONTROL Article 31). We have appealed to
our various foreign embassies, and they have spoken with your prime minister. We have corresponded with your foreign affairs office and, through them, with your Minister of Carriacou and Attorney General. We have visited your police force on both Carriacou and Grenada, and know that the commissioner of police is aware of our situation.
And still we sit and wait.
We and the marina have appealed directly to the Corion Estate to allow us to leave by temporarily removing the fence and quickly relaunching our vessels. There has been no response to those requests. Since the end of April, it has been complete silence.
The marina applied for temporary relief to the civil court, which included each of our stories of hardship and harm at being held hostage. The court ordered dismissal of that application, without ruling one way or the other.
And still we have hope.
The marina has the manpower, the equipment, and the desire —and yes, even the support of your laws — to launch us. They are the only ones able to do so, and are not yet able to act due to the barriers.
Their blockage is our blockage.
So why do we now write a letter of love to you? You are a power in your own right, and we have not yet asked for your direct support. You have welcomed us with kindness and compassion from the very beginning — this is not your fault, and we want you to know that we don’t blame you for it. As a society, you have treated us with kindness and empathy. You have sympathized with our situation, have expressed outrage that such a thing could occur here, and have provided guidance from afar. Even your street dogs and sheep greet us as friends. You are the people, the heart and soul of Carriacou, and we see you being harmed just as we are by this shameful and, quite frankly, flabbergasting situation. The economic trickle-down affect is real, whether you are personally experiencing it yet or not. Your reputation as a hospitable and safe destination for visitors is being quickly and significantly deteriorated. Trust in your laws is being eroded for locals and foreigners alike. The longer it continues, the longer it will take to recover, and we prefer to see Carriacou thriving.
No, this is not your fault, but we ask you to consider harnessing your power to move mountains, or in this case, remove barriers and open access to oceans. We need the fence removed, at least temporarily, and we need the Corion Estate’s agreement to support the launch of our vessels. These are the short-term barriers and are our prison walls.
We ask you to help us raise the noise against those forces that are actively working against a hostage resolution, or whose apathy is resulting in the same lack of progress. You can support those allies who are working hard toward a solution but are still somehow unable to remedy the situation. You can reach out to the people listed below and ask how they are involved, what they are doing, and whether they see themselves as allies or blockers to our release. We have not designated them here as such, but each is aware of the situation and has a role to play. We are simply asking your authorities to do their jobs, obey your laws, and act with the urgency we feel the situation demands. (Today it is us, tomorrow it could be you.)
We know there are yet heroes out there who can help us!
Sincerely yours,
Leslie Bell-Friedel, Nizhoni
Lou Le Sommer, Malumau
Nadège and Jeremy Sauvage, Mr. Tong
For the Tyrell Bay Hostages (and Doodl)
HOSTAGES@NIZHONI.WORLD
Corion Estate (family/representatives):
Trust Admin – Stephanie Nerverson-Young
Estate Representative – Nellie Adams
Estate Representative – Margaret Corion
Local Representative – Clarence (Policeman)
Planning & Development Authority:
Technical Operations Manager – Naomi Dorival
CEO – Allen Gilbert
Government of Grenada:
Minister of Carriacou – Tevin Andrews
Prime Minister – Dickon Mitchell
Minister of Legal Affairs / Attorney General – Claudette Joseph
Foreign Affairs, Trade & Export Development Chief of Protocol – Lyndeon George-Bellamy
Permanent Secretary – Roxie McLeish-Hutchinson
Royal Grenada Police Force:
Commissioner of Police – Randy Connaught
Staff – Carriacou
Staff – Grenada
Foreign Embassies:
US Principal Officer – Cindy M. Diouf
French Consul, St. Lucia – Kévin Billières
French Attaché to OECS – Hilda Henri
German Hon. Consul – Jochen Lenz
Tyrell Bay Marina Owner – Jerome McQuilkin
