By Jonathan L. Mayuga
Authorities vowed to intensify operations against illegal fishing activities in Tañon Strait in the Visayas to protect the important fishing ground and conservation area.
Dr. Isabelo Montejo, director of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’s (DENR) office in Region 7, told reporters the illegal-fishing campaign will be sustained in partnership with various stakeholders.
Montejo issued the pronouncement during the Second Tañon Strait Protected Seascape (TSPS) Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) General Assembly on March 10 in Cebu City.
“We hope to sustain such concerted efforts to minimize, if not totally free, Tañon Strait from illegal and destructive fishing activities,” he said.
A joint seaborne operation of the government apprehended four commercial fishing vessels engaged in illegal fishing in Tañon Strait, from September 15 to October 31, 2015.
The commercial boats were caught near the towns of Bindoy and Badian, and Guilhungan City, all in the province of Negros Oriental. A total of 55 people were onboard the vessels, including the boat captains and crew members.
According to Montejo, the 45-day joint seaborne operation was successfully conducted by the DENR, together with the regional office of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), in collaboration with the Philippine National Police (PNP) and local government units of Bindoy, Badian and Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental
“We commend the DENR, BFAR, PNP and local government officials for their dedication and passion in conducting seaborne patrol operations to apprehend commercial fishermen who continue to operate in Tañon Strait,” said lawyer Gloria Estenzo Ramos, vice president of Oceana Philippines, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to ocean protection and conservation.
“This sends a clear and firm signal to fishery-law violators that the government, in partnership with fishermen groups and civil- society organizations, is serious in its campaign against illegal fishing, and in sustainably managing and protecting Tañon Strait,” Ramos added.
Section 20 of the National Integrated Protected Area System Act of 1992 (Republic Act 7586), which prohibits “hunting, destroying, disturbing or mere possession of any plant or animal or products derived therefrom without a permit from the PAMB; and use of any motorized equipment without a permit.”
The four apprehended commercial fishing vessels are FB San Vicente Ferrer, owned by Alfredo Escoba of Malbog, Alegria, Cebu; FB Sto. Niño, owned by Florante G. Jara of Camandayon, Jimalalud, Negros Oriental; FB Blue Haven, owned by Antonio Pementera of Poblacion, Badian, Cebu; and FB Adiarne, owned by Mario L. Pagador of Puan, Vallehermoso, Negros Oriental.
Meanwhile, PNP Maritime Group Director Police Chief Supt. Efren Perez, in a recent letter to Ramos, said they will exhaust all efforts to minimize and preempt illegal commercial fishing and unsustainable fishing practices in Tañon Strait and other fishing grounds in Region 7.
Perez said he has instructed the chief of the PNP regional maritime unit, Police Senior Supt. Agustin Molina, to conduct anti-illegal-fishing operations and initiate a coordination meeting with Oceana and other members of the Coastal Law Enforcement Alliance Region 7.