Negombo (AsiaNews) - The 51 Sri Lankan fishermen who were arrested 6 months back in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are still detained in India. They are under the custody of the authorities in New Delhi since the 8th of March and accused of violation of the Indian territorial waters. The long standing controversy regarding the continuous trespassing of the Sri Lankan fishermen that irritates firstly the governments of the Indian coastal states and of the islands of the Bay of Bengal seems to impede their return home.
The families of the 51 prisoners accuse the Sri Lankan government of inaction and are pressing the Minister for Fisheries, who says that he needs at least 2 more weeks for their release. Lional Fernando, one of the imprisoned fishermen’s relative tells Asianews that “the owners of 5 out of 9 boats have paid 5thousand rupees (70 Euros) for each of the 25 crew members. They expected them to be released last Friday, but are still detained”.
For the fishermen’s family members this imprisonment not only causes anxiety but also serious economic problems. Fishing is their only source of livelihood and the long term absence of husband and sons increases their poverty.
Heman Kumara, the General Secretary of the World Forum for Fisher People (W.F.F.P.) and responsible for the National Fisheries Solidarity Movement (N.A.F.S.O), explains that the main problem “is the lack of a policy for a sustainable use of our sea”. According to the representative of the N.A.F.S.O, such incidents will continue occurring if the government of Colombo does not define a clear policy that sustains the work of the small fishermen of the island.
