On the night of December 4, 2014 at 10.30 pm one of the
fishermen from Siridao village, the coast of Zuari river was fishing inside Zuari
river. He noticed a trawler entering within 100 meters distance and ripped
through traditional fishermen’s fishing net in Zuari river.
Fishermen towed his canoe closer to Trawler and got onto
the trawler and ordered it to stop in the middle of the riveri. He then asked
the trawler staff to get into his canoe in river and come to the shore. The
staff agreed and everybody got into fishermen’s canoe and came to Siridao.
Fishermen asked dinner to the staff from the trawler but
they refused. Then he gave his mats to staff to sleep. Before sleeping,
fishermen got all the legal document of the fishing trawler available in board
as well as identity cards of the trawler staff. Fishermen told the staff of the
trawler to stay on land till morning when Director of Fisheries, Government of
Goa will be visiting them. The staff agreed. Fisherman went to sleep at 1.00 pm
as well as the trawler staff. Everybody went to sleep. Fisherman got up at 5.30
am and found trawler as well as staff missing. He found them nowhere in river
or on shore. Their documents remained with fishermen. Mats were there but
sleeping trawlers were not there. Fisherman cannot believe as to how the
trawler managed to escape. They must have gone swimming to the trawler or
someone must have taken them in canoe. Mobile phones of the trawler staff were
not confiscated. Possibly they were in communication with their boss somewhere
and succeeded in releasing the trawler at the wee hours of December 05, 2014.
For fishermen it is still a victory as the initiative of one fisherman along
with his family members succeeded in compounding the trawler.
Bharat Mukti Morcha congratulates Siridao fishermen for
the direct action on the illegal fishing. Goa government as well as police has
few lessons to learn from Siridao fishermen. Will they learn? Never mind, even
if not they will be forced to learn.
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