Fishermen arrests: India reiterates request for early Indo-Sri Lanka fishermen talks

The request for meeting of fishermen’s associations of India and Sri Lanka was conveyed at the sixth meeting of the India-Sri Lanka Joint Working Group in Colombo.

India on Tuesday (October 29, 2024) reiterated its call, at a meeting of the India-Sri Lanka Joint Working Group (JWG) on Fisheries, for an early meeting of fishermen’s associations of the two countries to discuss issues concerning the two fishing communities.

Also read: It is crucial to resume talks with Tamil Nadu counterparts, say northern Sri Lankan fishing community leaders

This was conveyed at the sixth meeting of JWG in Colombo. It assumed significance in the wake of “increase in detention of Indian fishermen and their boats in Sri Lankan custody, including imposition of long sentences and heavy fines,” a matter that India raised at the meeting, according to a release issued by the Indian High Commission in Colombo.  The Group last met in March 2022 through virtual mode.

The arrested fishermen are all from the Palk Bay-bordering districts of Tamil Nadu, who have been accused of having transgressed the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL). Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, in his latest letter to External Affairs Minister  S. Jaishankar, pointed out that “in the year 2024 alone, 30 such incidents have occurred. As of today (October 27, 2024), 140 fishermen and 200 fishing boats are under the custody of the Sri Lankan authorities.”   

In August, representatives of the fishermen bodies in Tamil Nadu, in their meeting with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in New Delhi,  sought his intervention in arranging a meeting with their counterparts in the Northern Province of  Sri Lanka.  The arrests in recent months had triggered protests by the fishermen of Rameswaram. However, fishermen of the Northern Province have been contending that in addition to illegal fishing,  the Tamil Nadu fishermen have been resorting to “destructive” bottom trawling, a practice banned by Sri Lanka since July 2017 in view of its ability to deplete the marine resources.

At the JWG meeting, India, which referred to the “recent tragic incidents at sea” leading to unfortunate injuries and loss of lives [of the Tamil Nadu fishermen], “strongly reiterated” that the use of force should be avoided under all circumstances. Calling for the  release of  Indian fishermen and their boats under Sri Lankan custody at the earliest, New Delhi stressed the need for upholding “established understandings and modalities” on issues related to the fishermen. Both sides agreed that the highest priority should be accorded to address the various issues faced by the fishermen in a “humanitarian manner as they pertain to livelihood concerns on both sides,”  the release stated. , adding that the two teams also agreed that “only a humane, constructive and cooperative approach can create a durable basis for addressing the issues” faced by the fishermen of the two countries. 

The Indian delegation was led by Abhilaksh Likhi, Secretary, Department of Fisheries while the Sri Lankan team was headed by M.P.N.M. Wickramasinghe, Secretary, Ministry of Fisheries. The Indian delegation included senior officials from the Union Ministries of External Affairs, and  Fisheries, Animal Husbandry. and Dairying; Tamil Nadu government; Navy; Coast Guard; Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute and the High Commission. The two sides would continue to have “comprehensive discussions on the issues related to fishermen for finding a mutually acceptable and long lasting solution,” the release added.

Published - October 30, 2024 12:48 am IST