A wonderful country that assaults fishermen when politicians are having foreign visits..
Number of fishermen had been attacked last Thursday by a group of SL Nevi while they were fishing in the Negombo lagoon. While they were fishing in the lagoon they were attacked without informing them about any reason for the attack.
“We were fishing normally in the lagoon as it’s our job and we didn’t engage any banned fishing gear or anything else but I was seriously assaulted over my hip with a rod by a army soldier. After assaulting they blamed us very ugly to move out from the lagoon but we were not informed about anything that why such things happenings to us when we live as fishermen” Antoney Joseph added. He is a fisherman who has been fishing in Negombo lagoon for more than 20years.
“I am Victor Fernando (55), fishermen living in Kurana. I can remember that day we went for fishing and we were assaulted with long rods. The group of nevi didn’t allow collecting even our laid nets back. Therefore our nets are still in the lagoon” another fisherman who attend to the meeting organized by lagoon fishermen at NAFSO secretariat office @ 10.30 A.M.
At least 15 lagoon fishermen who are assaulted last Thursday came to NAFSO National Secretariat office for complaining the incident and to discuss their difficulties to face them as a community, happening similar incident in the fisheries sector. They met the National Convener of NAFSO and some other officers and discussed the matter all together for defeating such tyrannical behaviors of the government and its authorities.
According to the fishermen the lagoon is banned when some political heads are flying to foreign countries over the lagoon for their foreign visits.
” If they have such a schedule for foreign visits’ at least they should inform us even using a red light as a security signal. But they are not working in such manner. Only thing that they do is assaulting fishermen and banning the lagoon without informing fishers an exact day for going back to fish"
Finally a fisherman added who doesn’t like to mention his name.
