Thursday, December 25, 2008
By By Jan Khaskheli
Karachi
The recent economic crunch has proved fatal for the marginalised sections of society, fisherfolk in particular, who have been deprived of all basic necessities of life, speakers said on Wednesday at a seminar titled ‘Pakistan Economy and the Poverty of Fishermen.’ The event was organised by the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) in collaboration with ActionAid Pakistan.
A large number of fisherfolk, women as well as men, belonging to various coastal localities of Karachi, Thatta and Badin attended the event. The PFF had invited all officials concerned, economists, intellectuals, and civil society representatives along with community people to share their views. Unfortunately, economists as well as government representatives ignored the voice of the victims.
The state departments add more problems to the lives of fisherfolk by awarding jetties to companies for real estate businesses, contracts of water bodies to influential people, allowing deep-sea industrial trawlers to poach fish stock from Pakistani waters and leaving land and timber mafia to chop off the mangrove forest, speakers said.
They demanded immediate measures to amend the Sindh Fisheries Ordinance 1980 from which the term ‘lease’ or ‘contract’ should be deleted. They also demand an announcement of a right-based sustainable fisheries policy by the government- a policy that must incorporate all indivisible human rights, including socioeconomic, cultural, political, civic and freedom of expression rights. Moreover, they were sceptical about the pledges that the current Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government has not honoured even after the 10 months of being in the power. The poor fishermen voted to elect the PPP candidates in their vicinities, the speakers claimed.
Ali Mohammed Mallah, hailing from Zero Point on the Badin coast, portrayed the real picture of fishermen residing there. He told The News that now people even catch juvenile fish and crabs – something they wouldn’t have dreamed of doing 10 to 15 years ago.
There is no fish along the seashore because several sugar mills flow their waste and chemicals through drains to the sea, poisoning the sea, their source of livelihood, he said.
The speakers also criticised parliamentarians elected from fisherfolk constituencies, and said that they breached promises made to the marginalised fisherfolk community.
Saeed Baloch
General Secretary
PAKISTAN FISHERFOLK FORUM [PFF]
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