Regulation for foreign fishing vessels amended

Shirley Wijesinghe

The Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources has amended the regulations pertaining to fishing in Sri Lankan territorial waters by foreign vessels and issued a special gazette notification No.1555/13 of 26.06.2008, giving effect to this.

Permission for fishing in Sri Lankan territorial waters was granted earlier to owner companies of foreign fishing vessels under a licence issued by the Director General of the Fisheries Department with relaxed regulations and conditions.

According to the new amended regulations foreign vessels should obtain licences for unloading their harvest not only at the fishery harbours in the country but also at other commercial harbours, anchorages and unloading centres in the country.

Twenty per cent of the harvest of foreign fishing vessels should also be supplied to the Ceylon Fisheries Corporation according to the new regulations. The loading of the fish harvested by foreign vessels too are bound by the new regulations.

It has been observed that various malpractices have occurred in the past under the prevailed regulations. This has adversely affected the poor local fishermen and the market.