KARACHI: Federal Minister for Ports and Shipping Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo has said that if overfishing is not stopped in our sea, in the next 20 years there will be no fish left there.
He was speaking on the inaugural day of a national workshop on ‘Implementing the voluntary guidelines for securing sustainable small-scale fisheries’ organised by the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) in collaboration with the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) here on Wednesday.
He said the waters of both Balochistan and Sindh had reached the red level. “In the coming 20 years, you may not get any fish from this sea,” he said adding that fish then would only be seen in aquariums.
Raising the issue of overfishing by big trawlers, he said small fishermen were starving while the fishing mafia depleted marine resources. “The use of destructive nets in the sea is no less than committing crime. The nets are endangering the marine ecosystem,” he said, adding that at present there were around 15,000 such trawlers operating in the sea.
“The nets are spread up to 25 kilometres. Both the Sindh and Balochistan governments should take notice of this.”
The federal minister also warned about marine pollution, saying that it would prevent foreign boats from coming here. “Due to marine pollution, even the navy has complained that their submarines are being affected.”
Sindh Minister for Livestock and Fisheries Mohammad Ali Malkani, meanwhile, announced that the Sindh government would soon establish an advisory council for fisheries. “The council will take advice and input from fisherfolk into consideration,” he said. “Because unless and until there is any input of the stakeholders, there will be no sustainable implementation of the guidelines for securing sustainable small-scale fisheries.”
Mr Malkani said that there were fishermen living below the poverty level. He offered full support of the Sindh government to such fishermen, recalling that he also belonged to the coastal communities and was fully aware of the problems they faced.
PML-N MPA Haji Shafi Mohammad Jamote also said that overfishing was a big issue and suggested that industrialists should be discouraged from fishing to make space for the real fishermen. He suggested implementation of a ban on the destructive nets and for those who used them to think of a safer alternative.
Earlier, PFF chairperson Mohammad Ali Shah gave a detailed presentation on the FAO’s voluntary guidelines regarding small-scale fisheries. He said a major role of the guidelines was to move towards responsible fisheries. “Until this objective is achieved, we cannot save the fisheries and protect the lives of the fisher folk.”
Published in Dawn, August 25th, 2016
Dear visitor, the comments section is undergoing an overhaul and will return soon.