Mauritanian fishermen denounce "illegal activities" by foreign rivals

Mauritanian fishermen denounce "illegal activities" by foreign rivals
Hundreds of small scale Mauritanian fishermen on Sunday organized a sit-in in front of the presidential palace in the capital Nouakchott to denounce the "illegal activities" of foreign rivals being protected by the Atlantic Ocean African country's businessmen.

The Mauritanian fishermen facing difficulties today supply fish to the local market and neighboring countries like Senegal. But the activity is dominated by foreigners, especially the Senegalese, they complained.

The fishermen were carrying placards denouncing the act of protecting foreigners by the nationals, fishing small fish which are banned and increased insecurity on the beaches.

They vowed to start "blocking the roads for all those who, against the law, want to continue looting our national resources."

"We have already protested before the fisheries and commerce ministries without getting any meaningful response," said the spokesman for the traditional fishermen, Yaly N'Diay.

According to Ibrahima Sarr, the secretary general of the federation of fishermen, "this federation, which has 2,000 members, is there for the protection of the rights of fishermen."

"It's regrettable that sometimes even those who have been employed to protect us like the maritime surveillance officials act in complicity with the foreigners," he said.

According to recent statistics by the Mauritanian Federation of Fishermen, small scale fishing contributes significantly to the reduction of joblessness with about 15,000 people employed and a turnover of about 150 million U.S. dollars obtained from the 110, 000 tons of fish caught each year.

Editor: Fang Yang

English.news.cn   2011-11-21 14:56:50 FeedbackPrintRSS

NOUAKCHOTT, Nov. 21 (Xinhua)