Fishing communities cry foul over lists

COASTAL fishing communities are crying foul over anomalies on a provisional list of anglers set to benefit from the state’s long-awaited small-scale fishing policy.

Names of 179 Hawston fishermen appear on the list, but nextdoor Kleinmond in the Overstrand district of the Western Cape only managed four.

Similar discrepancies have been reported by other community leaders who say the faulty list undermines the state’s plan to allocate fish quotas to planned small-scale fishing cooperatives – as per new legislation intended to help struggling coastal communities. The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries plans to issue a final list later this month. Concerns over the policy prompted a protest outside parliament yesterday, where a list of grievances was handed over.