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| Tuesday, 5 October 2004 |
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by Chamikara Weerasinghe The National Fisheries Solidarity Movement last week handed over a draft policy on Sustainable Fisheries Development to Secretary, Ministry of Fisheries and Ocean Resources, N. Bambaravanage. The draft was handed over at the Ministry by the Movement's Convenor Herman Kumara. A paper with signatures of more than 300,000 fishermen was also handed along with the draft. Kumara said they had presented the draft to the Committee appointed by Fisheries and Ocean Resources Minister Chandrasena Wijesinghe to work out a National Fisheries Policy. Speaking at a press conference to explain the proposed policy, he said they had started preparing provisions for the draft policy over the last six years. "The policy is based on promoting a self-sufficient local fishing industry with focus on the development of small-scale fishermen on a broader basis," Kumara said. He said they had prepared this policy to defeat the previous government's fishery policy under its program, Regaining Sri Lanka. "The so-called, Dheewara Nawodaya under Regaining Sri Lanka was based on promoting large-scale fishing by foreign trawlers. The strategy was to bring in foreigners to make the best of Sri Lankan seas while stranding local fishermen," he said. The new draft stipulates labour rights for fishermen. It aims to develop small-scale fishermen, responsible for 60 per cent of the country's fish produce," he added. |
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