Fishing for solutions

Wednesday, 16 September 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

SRI Lanka’s revived friendship with India could be beneficial for thousands of northern fishermen who have been affected by Indian fishermen crossing the maritime boundary line into local waters. Resolving their livelihood issues is also a part of reconciliation as they are also people who were severely affected by the war.

The relatively small size of the community, about 100,000 or so, along with their comparative lack of education and political clout has resulted in them being largely ignored as a very real stumbling block to stronger relations with India.

Earlier this year the Indian Coast Guard in an eye-opening report informed the Madras High Court Bench that 36,865 Indian fishing boats reportedly crossed the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) in the Palk Bay region and indulged in poaching as well as smuggling activities in the Sri Lankan waters between January and February 2014.

Filing a counter affidavit in reply to a contempt of court application moved against top Government officials, including the Union Cabinet Secretary, the Indian Coast Guard said the Sri Lankan Navy had even provided registration numbers of 1,474 such boats to the Indian High Commission along with a request to prevent unauthorised entry into their waters.

Claiming that a majority of the Indian fishermen were let off by the Sri Lankan Navy with a warning, the Coast Guard said only 185 boats and 937 crew members had been detained between January 2014 and 29 March 2015, on charges of following banned methods of fishing, which caused damage to Sri Lankan fishing gear, smuggling contraband and other illegal activities.

The Indian Coast Guard in a moment on candour admitted it was not legally empowered to arrest many of these fishermen and insisted information on the magnitude of the problem had been reported to the Tamil Nadu Government.

A few days later the Indian Central Government made an unequivocal appeal to Indian fishermen to stop venturing into Sri Lanka’s waters and warned continued forays would reduce chances of obtaining clemency from the Sri Lankan Government. This however would spawn fresh problems as Indian fishermen insist they cannot make ends meet unless they crossover to the Sri Lankan side.

Despite this hitch, the stance of the Indian Central Government has been sharply in favour of Sri Lanka than observed in previous exchanges. Yet, even before the latest tour by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe the tradition of releasing fishermen as a gesture of goodwill exists, showing at once how deeply political but unchanged the issue remains.

Nonetheless, any long-term solution will come from the fishermen themselves. Previous attempts have been largely unsuccessful, with Indian fishermen requesting access to Sri Lankan waters and refusing to stop bottom trawling practices.

After the appointment of the new Government and stronger relations with India there may be fresh opportunities for dialogue between the fishermen on both sides. A Sri Lankan delegation of fishermen backed by both Colombo and New Delhi could have a better chance at thrashing out a deal beneficial to the island and finally break the deadlock on discussions. But regional politics still play a large role and how far the Indian Government’s stance goes to change the ground situation remains to be seen.