Illegal fishing in Cauayan

The USAID-funded ECOFISH Project, led by Professor Nygiel Armada, conducted a Feed-backing and Ecosystems Approach to Fisheries Management planning for South Negros in Hotel Essencia, Dumaguete City, April 14-16.

I was invited to attend the workshop by site coordinator Aimee Sobrevega, and fishery officials from the seven towns in the South Negros, Cauayan, Sipalay, Hinobaan, Basay, Bayawan, Sta. Catalina and Siaton, and other regional and national fishery officials, were in attendance.

On the last day of the workshop, the participants produced their management plans to implement the EAFM approach, which included responses of local government units to climate change, and violations of the 15-kilometer ban for fishing operations by commercial fishers in coastal areas.

The workshop was successful. The participants discussed the various problems of coastal fisheries, and offered their suggestions for sustainable management of the fishery resources in the large marine area of the seven towns. It is expected that the mayors, vice mayors and municipal councils will support their fishery officials in their areas of jurisdiction in the implementation of these plans.

However, one presentation on the second day, and a news item in the community newspaper, the Visayan DAILY STAR, caused me much dismay. The presentation showed that the municipality of Cauayan, my own town of which I am proud, had the most number of violations by commercial fishers. Other towns had also some violations. All these information indicated that violations in the marine waters around the seven municipalities are a great concern for the Negros coastal communities.

The report in the newspaper dealt with the arrest by a team of Task Force Dagat and Maritime Police of 27 fishermen in a commercial fishing vessel, owned by a certain Sherwin Lim of Hinigaran, which was caught fishing in the territorial waters of Cauayan as stated in the March 28 issue of the DAILY STAR. This violation is serious and should be severely dealt with by the authorities.

Of the seven municipalities in South Negros, Cauayan has the largest marine area. Thirteen of the 23 barangays are coastal areas. People are highly dependent on fish resources. One question that needs an answer is, what have the mayor and the municipal officials of Cauayan been doing about these violations, which have been reported to be going on for some time?

We thank Governor Alfredo Marañon Jr. for his role in the apprehension of the illegal fishers in the municipal waters of Cauayan. His action is not surprising as he is well known for his full support of conservation and good environmental management since the days when he was mayor of Sagay, Negros Occidental. I hope that his Task Force Dagat will continue its good work in coastal surveillance.*

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