Fiji concerns on over-fishing

[Stacey King]

Friday, June 25, 2010 Fiji Broadcasting Corporation

Bigger fishing countries are taking advantage of the vulnerabilities of small island states to over-fish and plunder their fish stocks, says Fiji Fish Managing Director Graham Southwick.

Southwick says these bigger countries have destroyed their fishing grounds due to poor management and are now setting their sights on the South Pacific.

While the Tuna Commission governing all tuna activities in the Pacific is well managed, over-fishing is hard to stop given the money brought in by bigger fishing fleets.

"They approach the little countries that need aid, need money and need some commercial activity. It’s hard to say for example to Kiribati don’t go bringing all these boats in there because it’s affecting all of us down here - when nobody is taking care of Kiribati .

So there are still problems with over fishing. Unfortunately Fiji does not have a lot of influence or impact on the decisions by the other countries to the North and West of us. We just have to do what we can to encourage them to manage their fisheries so there’s some for the rest of us here."

[Roba]

definitely!!! leave some for the locals and future generation. I remember growing up in Rabi in the late 80's where my dad and I just went fishing nearby, now I heard you have to sail or paddle your canoe further away...there were lots of seafood (like octopus,all kinds of shellfish) then where you can just walk a few meters away from your home and get it but now you walk miles and miles away.