Lanka, India to discuss illegal fishing in Palk Bay

Chamikara Weerasinghe

Top officials from the Sri Lankan and Indian fisheries ministries will meet this week, to find a solution to end unlawful fishing that takes place in the Palk Bay region, with over thousands of Indian trawlers poaching in Sri Lankan waters for illegal fishing.

Fisheries Ministry Secretary Dr Damitha de Soyza said that yesterday, they will meet Indian Fisheries Ministry officials on October 7 to discuss matters pertaining to fisheries issues between the two countries.

This will be our Joint Worker Group Meeting on Fisheries,” she said.

Asked whether they will discuss the poaching crisis and illegal catches that are being taken away by Indian trawlers Dr Soyza said, the matter will be of great importance to both countries.

“We are firm on our stand that illegal fishing should stop at once and UN resolutions on International Maritime Boundary Line should be respected at all times,” she said.

”Although there is no process in place to estimate the losses incurred by illegal fishing, the Indian trawlers take away fish resources from the country’s waters to the tune of several thousand million rupees on a daily basis,” Dr Soyza said.

According to Jaffna University senior lecturer on geography, Dr A S Susai, the country loses about Rs 5 billion on daily basis as being the value for beche-de-mer or sea cucumber alone, as a result of illegal fishing by Indian trawlers in Sri Lankan waters.

Meanwhile, Northern fishermen told the Daily News that they have been deprived of their rights to benefit from the sea by a three-decade war, and now by poaching trawlers.

The fishermen said, all they want is to re-establish their livelihoods.

Asked about their situation and the Ministry’s approach to resolve the poaching crisis, Dr Soyza said, the ministry gets letters everyday from the North about the matter.

From the standpoint of the ministry, it does not have the luxury of being able to show flexibility, or give time line or any interim measures, to solve the crisis under the circumstances, she explained..

“And I think that the fishermen in the North and East must be allowed to make full use of their fishing grounds. These areas must be cleared of any illegal activity, to protect their livelihoods,” she said. .

Besides, the trawlers concerned use bottom trawling as a means to catch fish. This has destroyed the seabeds badly. The ministry has a responsibility to protect the seabed and its resources in keeping with the international conventions on marine environment protection,” she pointed out.

More importantly, the rights of the fishermen to use the country’s legitimate sea , has to be established, she explained.

The ministry plans to increase the North and East fish production by 80 percent to achieve its economic targets, but illegal trawling has thwarted the process, she said.

The Indian External Affairs Ministry will announce the name of the officials who will participate the Joint Workers Meeting today.