We are now ready to fight and will not give you fish, sing the city’s fishermen
Fishermen chanted slogans, discussed policies during rally on Sunday to celebrate World Fisheries Day.
KARACHI:
It was a day no less than that of Eid for the fishermen who danced through the streets of Saddar on Sunday to celebrate World Fisheries Day. Residents and shopkeepers in the area clapped their hands to the music as hundreds of men, women and children holding nets, fish and models of boats in their hands danced to local songs, such as “Je virhanden ta virandasen par machi kon dendasen” (we are now ready to fight, and will not give you fish) during a rally which started at the Regal Chowk, Saddar, and wove its way through the Zaibunnisa Street until it approached the Karachi Press Club.
Fishermen also shouted slogans of “Jagia jagia mahgheer jagia” (fishermen are now awake) and “Jeseen raat andheri rahandi jang asan je jari rahandi (the war we have waged will continue till the darkness comes to an end) during the rally.
“We wait for a whole year for these celebrations and it is like Eid for us,” said 40-year-old Zulikha, a resident of Chashma Goth, Ibrahim Hyderi, who happily added that she was enjoying the event with her three children. “Every year, my children participate in tableaus and theatre dramas on fishing issues,” she said.
Women from Ibrahim Hyderi are not the only ones who enjoy taking part in the cultural festivities organised on World Fisheries Day, said Hajan Mallah, adding that women from Abdullah Goth, Hawkes Bay, Shireen Jinnah Colony, Keamari, Lyari, Keti Bandar, Kharo Chan, Jati and Shah Bandar, Thatta, also participate in the event. They held banners and placards carrying statements against the contractual system in the fisheries industry and also advertised the cause of detained fishermen. The families whose men are imprisoned in Indian jails stood in the front row, holding a banner with “We are not terrorists but patriot Pakistanis, please stop arresting fishermen” written across.
Among the throng of fishermen stood 45-year-old Hajan Mallah, who hailed from Badin, and had come to Karachi to take part in the rally and celebrations organised by the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF). The rally was led by PFF chairman Muhammed Ali Shah and Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research (Piler) director Karamat Ali who also addressed the fishermen at the Karachi Press Club and emphasised the need for a fisheries policy as well as legislation against the contractual system in the industry.
“The fisheries industry is running on just one ordinance promulgated in 1980,” said Shah, adding that “since the sector contributes billions of rupees to the national exchequer”, it is allowed to demand a sustainable fisheries policy.
While the forum had also fought against the illegal occupation by Rangers on fishing ponds and lakes in Sindh, locals with “influence” have now replaced the Rangers and fishermen no longer have the right to fish in the area, said PFF Badin president Mithan Mallah. He added that, “When the PPP leaders were in the opposition, they had promised to abolish the contractual system, but to no avail.”
Since its inception in 1998, PFF organises World Fisheries Day every year on November 21. This year, the theme of the forum’s activities is “Pakistan Debt Cancellation campaign” with the demand to use the money for the rehabilitation of the communities displaced by floods.
Talking to The Express Tribune, a PFF spokesperson said that the cultural festivities are not only celebrated in Karachi, but also in other towns and cities of Sindh, where rallies and other events have been arranged.
Meanwhile, adviser to Sindh chief minister on information and archives, Sharmila Farooqui, has floated a proposal to start fish farms based on public-private partnerships across the province. “Fishermen need to be encouraged to open fish farms because they are facing financial constraints due to the destruction of several fresh water lakes and ponds,” she said.
Pakistani fish is popular worldwide and has great value in the European market, said Farooqui, adding that, “fish farming is easy because it does not require fertiliser, annual land cultivation and pesticides, which are mandatory for crops. Fish farms only need water in the shape of ponds, which can be obtained from taps and wells.”
Farooqui also asked the industries in Karachi to install effluent-treatment plants to reduce water pollution.
WITH ADDIDIONAL INPUT FROM PPI
Published in The Express Tribune November 22nd, 2010.
It was a day no less than that of Eid for the fishermen who danced through the streets of Saddar on Sunday to celebrate World Fisheries Day. Residents and shopkeepers in the area clapped their hands to the music as hundreds of men, women and children holding nets, fish and models of boats in their hands danced to local songs, such as “Je virhanden ta virandasen par machi kon dendasen” (we are now ready to fight, and will not give you fish) during a rally which started at the Regal Chowk, Saddar, and wove its way through the Zaibunnisa Street until it approached the Karachi Press Club.
Fishermen also shouted slogans of “Jagia jagia mahgheer jagia” (fishermen are now awake) and “Jeseen raat andheri rahandi jang asan je jari rahandi (the war we have waged will continue till the darkness comes to an end) during the rally.
“We wait for a whole year for these celebrations and it is like Eid for us,” said 40-year-old Zulikha, a resident of Chashma Goth, Ibrahim Hyderi, who happily added that she was enjoying the event with her three children. “Every year, my children participate in tableaus and theatre dramas on fishing issues,” she said.
Women from Ibrahim Hyderi are not the only ones who enjoy taking part in the cultural festivities organised on World Fisheries Day, said Hajan Mallah, adding that women from Abdullah Goth, Hawkes Bay, Shireen Jinnah Colony, Keamari, Lyari, Keti Bandar, Kharo Chan, Jati and Shah Bandar, Thatta, also participate in the event. They held banners and placards carrying statements against the contractual system in the fisheries industry and also advertised the cause of detained fishermen. The families whose men are imprisoned in Indian jails stood in the front row, holding a banner with “We are not terrorists but patriot Pakistanis, please stop arresting fishermen” written across.
Among the throng of fishermen stood 45-year-old Hajan Mallah, who hailed from Badin, and had come to Karachi to take part in the rally and celebrations organised by the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF). The rally was led by PFF chairman Muhammed Ali Shah and Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research (Piler) director Karamat Ali who also addressed the fishermen at the Karachi Press Club and emphasised the need for a fisheries policy as well as legislation against the contractual system in the industry.
“The fisheries industry is running on just one ordinance promulgated in 1980,” said Shah, adding that “since the sector contributes billions of rupees to the national exchequer”, it is allowed to demand a sustainable fisheries policy.
While the forum had also fought against the illegal occupation by Rangers on fishing ponds and lakes in Sindh, locals with “influence” have now replaced the Rangers and fishermen no longer have the right to fish in the area, said PFF Badin president Mithan Mallah. He added that, “When the PPP leaders were in the opposition, they had promised to abolish the contractual system, but to no avail.”
Since its inception in 1998, PFF organises World Fisheries Day every year on November 21. This year, the theme of the forum’s activities is “Pakistan Debt Cancellation campaign” with the demand to use the money for the rehabilitation of the communities displaced by floods.
Talking to The Express Tribune, a PFF spokesperson said that the cultural festivities are not only celebrated in Karachi, but also in other towns and cities of Sindh, where rallies and other events have been arranged.
Meanwhile, adviser to Sindh chief minister on information and archives, Sharmila Farooqui, has floated a proposal to start fish farms based on public-private partnerships across the province. “Fishermen need to be encouraged to open fish farms because they are facing financial constraints due to the destruction of several fresh water lakes and ponds,” she said.
Pakistani fish is popular worldwide and has great value in the European market, said Farooqui, adding that, “fish farming is easy because it does not require fertiliser, annual land cultivation and pesticides, which are mandatory for crops. Fish farms only need water in the shape of ponds, which can be obtained from taps and wells.”
Farooqui also asked the industries in Karachi to install effluent-treatment plants to reduce water pollution.
WITH ADDIDIONAL INPUT FROM PPI
Published in The Express Tribune November 22nd, 2010.