Sri Lankan navy personnel arrested 21 country boat fishermen who had set out for fishing in the Gulf of Mannar on a charge of poaching and impounded their three ‘vallams’ (country boats).
The fishermen, who were part of about 1,200 fishermen, had set out for fishing from Pamban south sea on Tuesday morning. They were fishing on the high seas, when the Sri Lankan Navy arrested them in the early hours on Wednesday, reports received here said.
Sri Lankan Navy website said the fishermen were arrested when they were poaching in Sri Lankan waters, southwest of Talaimannar, along with three ‘dhows.’ The arrested fishermen were handed over to Mannar police.
U. Arulanandham, president of Alliance for the Release of Innocent Fishermen (ARIF), said that the fishermen were later handed over to the Fisheries Department. They were not taken to the court for judicial remand till late in the evening, he said quoting sources in Talaimannar.
This was the second batch of country boat fishermen arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy on a poaching charge. Meanwhile, G. Arul, coordinator of Pamban Country Boat Fishermen Association, condemned the Sri Lankan Navy for arresting country boat fishermen who used only drift net and caused no harm to marine resources.
The arrested fishermen might have inadvertently crossed International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL), he said, and demanded their unconditional release along with their boats.
