The Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) and Environmental
Rights Action (ERA) have petitioned the House of Representatives over the
incursion of fishing trawlers into Bayelsa shoreline.
In a joint petition, the groups said that the operations
of industrial trawlers near the coastline breached the laws.
They said that the petition was sequel to several
complaints of damage to fishing nets and gear by the trawlers operating close
to the shoreline which threatened the means of livelihood of local fishermen.
The petition was signed by Chief Nengi James, Bayelsa
Chapter Chairman of CLO and Mr Alagoa Morris, Head of ERA Office in Bayelsa.
The organizations noted that the activities of the
trawlers were threatening the traditional fishing occupation of the coastal
dwellers which is protected by the Fisheries Act No. 108 of 1992.
According to the petition, the Fisheries Act stipulates
that fishing trawlers should operate five nautical miles from the shore line
reserved for artisanal fishermen.
The organizations appealed to the House to compel the
trawler operators to comply with the Fisheries Act to avert conflict between
the trawler operators and the traditional fishermen.
They said that the fishermen were looking up to the
legislature to save their traditional vocation from extinction and called for
urgent intervention to bring succour to the coastal dwellers.
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