Postby *Anisa » Sun Nov 06, 2005 5:18 pm
The Illegal Fishing Issue
Somalia's coastal communities who eke marine resources are appealing to international community for help to keep foreign ships, which engage in illegal fishing out of their country's territorial waters. This is a critical time for the world at large in particular international organisations to integrate Somali people with their environment and safeguard their natural resources. The illegal fishing along the Somali coastline heightened after the disintegration of the Horn of African country into clan-based states following the overthrow of communist dictator Siad Barre almost a decade ago.
Taking advantage of a lack of patrolling securities, the foreign ships use prohibited fishing methods like drift nets, dynamites, breaking coral reefs and destroying the coral habitats where lobsters and other coral fish live. According to Somali Fisheries Society and Somalia Marine Resource Management, which monitor the country's marine environment, the illegally fishing vessels stay away into deeper waters during the days but come closer to the shore at night. They apply their destructive fishing techniques, which reduce the local population's harvest and damage nets and traps set by local fishermen. On several occasions, there have been reports of large amount of fish floating near the shore. Similarly, the Ocean Training and Promotion (OTP) has collected information that more than 200 foreign vessels have since 1991, been engaged in illegal fishing in the Somali coastline.
Some of these fishing vessel come to exploit from the developed and developing countries, which were thousands of miles away in particular those whose fisheries resources were drastically overexploited or are under reservation. Some of them use very sophisticated factory-fishing vessels, which are modeled for distant-water fishing. Their concern is short-term outlook and refusal to acknowledge ecological limits is devastating. Somalia does not only experience political displacement but also resource displacement.
The distant-water fishing vessels include those sailing under flags of conveniences such as China, France, Germany, Great Britain, Honduras, India, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Pakistan, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Soviet Federation, Spain, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Yemen had allegedly fished within 12 miles Somali waters. These vessels are in search of Dolphin fish, Grouper, Emperors, Tuna sp., Mackerel sp., Snapper, Swordfish, Shark sp. Herring and of course, other valuable in Somali coastal water species
It is estimated that foreigners steal $300 million worth of fish annually.
