MINISTRY MEETS FISHERMEN OVER CONFLICT IN W/R (PAGE 55)

(PUBLISHED ON APRIL 17)

Story: Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu, Takoradi

THE Western Regional Office of the Ministry of Fisheries has started an arbitration between aggrieved canoe fishermen and some Chinese fishermen who allegedly operate off the coast of the region, to avert imminent clashes between them.
This follows threats issued by the local fishermen to attack their Chinese counterparts for allegedly causing damage to their nets with their trawlers.
The fishermen, mostly from Half Assini, Dutch Komenda, Shama and Sekondi, alleged that apart from pair trawling, a process in which two trawlers drag nets between them to catch fish, the Chinese vessels employed unorthodox methods, such as the use of high voltage mercury bulbs, to attract and harvest fish, while at the same time threatening and intimidating the local fishermen on the sea.
At the Regional Office of the Ministry of Fisheries in Takoradi last Tuesday, local fishermen who had identified the said vessels belonging to the Chinese fishermen were called in, together with the operators of the trawlers, during which the parties involved agreed to resort to arbitration to resolve the issue.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic after the meeting, the Western Regional Director of Fisheries, Mr Alex Addo, said there were laws regarding what pertained in the marine world.
He said although his outfit was dedicated to resolving issues of such magnitude, the fishermen sometimes failed to give the right time and date on which such incidents took place, making it difficult for sanctions to be applied to the alleged perpetrators.
Mr Addo said the ministry was doing everything possible to engage the Navy to help intensify surveillance on the sea.