“Unti-unti ninyo kaming pinapatay”

In the 1980s, Mindanao social scientists presented their research about Northern Mindanao municipal fishers who described themselves as drowning in poverty because their small bancas/pumpboats were no match to the high-tech commercial fishing vessels in their fishing grounds.

Our country’s current municipal fishers will definitely face the same unfair /unjust competition from commercial fishers like the Mindanao 1980s municipal fishers once the Supreme Court (SC) First Division decision upholding that of the Malabon Regional Trial Court, allowing commercial fishing inside the 15-kilometer municipal fishing zone become final/executory,

Protesting fishers/various local/global groups/organizations are asking the SC to reconsider.

Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) together with 50 other Archbishops/Bishops, issued this strong statement urging all faithful stewards of God’s gifts “to advocate for the protection of our municipal waters and the rights of artisanal and municipal fishers, to pray with families and communities (to) reach the hearts of others even outside of our own circles: with the fervent hope that policymakers align with the wisdom of our laws and the values of our faith—policies that uphold sustainability, empower local governance, and prioritize ‘care for our common home’, as expressed in Pope Francis’ 2016 World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, and to safeguard the abundance of the sea and honor the Creator who made all things with love and wisdom.”

Will the courts hear the following pleas of our municipal fishers mentioned in that recently-released

CBCP statement?

From San Remigio, Cebu fisher Norlan Norlan Pagal;

“Paano na kami? Wala kaming kakayahan magpunta sa malalaking laot dahil sagwan at maliliit na pumpboat lang gamit namin. Sana makita ng Korte at ng pamahalaan na pinapahirapan ninyo kami, at unti-unti ninyo kaming pinapatay, pati na rin mga pamilya namin.”

From Mindanao fisher Luther Alison:

“Ang nakukuha ng commercial fishers sa isang gabi, 1000 banyeras: mahina pa iyan. Ilang pamilya ng municipal fisherfolks ang puwede na sanang maghatihati niyan? Ni isang banyera, hindi nga kami makakuha kapag nagpapalaot kami. Bakit pinag-aaway ang mga Pilipino?”

The CBCP statement noted:

“When commercial interests take precedence, the vulnerable are left to bear the cost—facing hunger/poverty/and displacement. Didn’t the Lord often remind his disciples to take only what they need to guard against greed?” (Lk 12:16-21)

A PMAS (Philippine Association of Marine Science) briefer - “Depth, Distance, and Sustainable Fisheries: The Science of Municipal Waters - shared by OCEANA’s Atty Nikka Oquias reported that:

a) Municipal waters are only 15% of our country’s marine waters (2,022,137.3 km) with 29,693.6 km shallower than 7 fathoms and, includes 27,000 sq.km of coral reef areas declared as MPAs (marine protected areas),

b) Currently, municipal fishers have 15.2% of total marine waters while commercial fishing vessels are allowed to fish within 84.8%.

c) Municipal fishers will have less than 2% of marine waters of exclusive fishing grounds where they are mostly restricted to their respective municipalities if commercial fishers are allowed to fish up to depths of 7 fathoms within municipal waters.

d) A 2021 BFAR profile reported that municipal fisherfolks are among the country’s poorest, with poverty incidence up to 30.6% (higher than the 18.1 national average).

PMAS recommended policymakers should reserve shallow fishing grounds for municipal fishers for 1) ecological benefits (protects critical marine habitats important for fisheries production sustainability/provides buffer for sustainability given that fishery resource abundance/productivity sequentially declines from shallow, to intermediate, to deep water portions of tropical shelves, and supports overall fishery/resource productivity/prevention of growth overfishing, given that smaller fishes inhabit shallow depths and move to deeper waters as they grow in size, and, 2) socio-economic benefits (ensures/enhances local fish food security/livelihoods, promotes preferential treatment of municipal fishers, thus enhancing social equity, and, promotes local autonomy- giving LGUs the option to develop/enhance high employment generating municipal fisheries.