Thursday, 20 November 2014 00:00
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THE issue of Indian fishermen illegally entering Sri Lankan waters opened a new chapter of sorts this week, with President Mahinda Rajapaksa commuting the death sentence of five Indian fishermen convicted for allegedly smuggling drugs into the country. India has responded positively to the move, insisting it opened the way for stronger discussions on the larger poaching problem front.
The five fishermen have been handed over to Indian officials in Colombo. Emerson, P. Augustus, R. Wilson, K. Prasath and J. Langlet, all hailing from Tamil Nadu, were apprehended in 2011 and were sentenced to death by the Colombo High Court on 30 October for alleged drug trafficking. The Court ruling had triggered fiery protests in parts of Tamil Nadu and sporadic violence broke out in and around Rameswaram Island.
The issue of fishermen is a very emotive matter for both Sri Lanka and India, where Tamil Nadu-based parties including AIADMK and DMK have been regularly pressing the Government to take up the matter with the Lankan authorities seriously and have often resented high-profile visits from the island nation.
Yet, despite several rounds of talks, little progress has been made. Northern Sri Lanka is home to an estimated 28,000 fishermen who have been affected by illegal poaching of Indian fishermen. Indirectly as many as 100,000 people survive on the sector in this part of the country. Yet, with little political representation, the community remains largely marginalised, with the poaching issue provoking many to leave their traditional way of earning.
They are also unhappy about Colombo’s repeated release of Indian fishermen, especially since it is not always reciprocated. With political forces deciding which way the tide turns, local fishermen feel they are merely a pawn in a larger power game.
According to Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratne, the industry loses an estimated $ 730 million worth of fish from illegal poaching from South India. The Government had targeted $ 500 million in revenue for 2013, but has had to keep its expectation low due to the significant losses from poaching.
Fish production in the Districts in the North and East, which increased by 37% to 99,190 metric tons in 2011, continued to increase to 154,974 metric tons in 2013. Sri Lankan studies estimate that an average of 1,056 Indian boats cross into Sri Lankan waters illegally, which means $ 19.72 million is lost from their shrimp catch alone.
In total Indian fishermen poach at least 65 million kilograms of fish each year. Satellite images suggest that the poaching is done in a highly-organised manner as the bulk of the boats operate in the night and scramble across the international maritime boundary line by four in the morning.
Colombo has previously defended its soft-peddling of the issue by pointing out that if reports are made to international bodies, most of South India’s fishing industry will be shut down and this could not be allowed because of the close relationship enjoyed by the two countries.
The latest release of fishermen would also give President Rajapaksa’s somewhat tenuous relationship with India an added boost ahead of presidential elections largely expected next year. It could be seen as a crucial vote puller in the northern community and aid the Government to sidestep the thorny issue of the 13th Amendment, at least temporally.
