Resenting against the fish exporters for offering very low rates for prawns and other fish species, the newly formed body of fishing community representatives on Tuesday announced complete strike of fishermen at Karachi Fish Harbor and other coastal areas of province on Thursday.
"No fisherman would leave for fishing nor any fish landing would be allowed on Thursday," announced Haji Shafi Muhammad Jamote, Muhammad Ali Shah, Haji Fakir Muhammad, Haji Ali, Haji Ibrahim, Habibullah Niazi, Asif Bhatti, Haji Sargand, Ahmed Khichi and Waja Gohar Khan, members of Fishermen Action Committee said in a press conference at Karachi Press Club.
They also threatened to dump thousands of tons of fish in front of Governor House and close down KPT and Keamari channel and launch a phase-wise struggle including holding of demonstrations, staging sit-in, observing hunger strike and organising public meetings if instability persisted in fish price.
The fishing community leaders demanded of the government swift action fixing the fish rates proportionate to dearness before observing strike by hundreds of thousands of fishermen. They stressed that the export companies may be made to buy the fish at fixed rates.
They said that the government imposes ban on fishing especially of prawns during June and July for being breeding season. This ban affects the fishermen severely, but they comply the orders strictly even then. After the breeding period, the exporters buy the prawns at a rate of Rs 600 per kg but soon they drop the rates to Rs 200 per kg as big fish catches arrive in the market. They drop the rates on the pretext of EU ban on exports.
The fishing community leaders deplored that the government has no control over fish Harbor due to which the fish mill owners, traders and exporters were exploiting poor fishermen.