Small-scale fishers have voiced concerns over the court application to review and set aside the allocation of their rights in the Western Cape.
Legal representatives for Environment, Forest and Fisheries Minister Barbara Creecy have lodged papers with the court seeking a review of the process, which many small-scale fishers believed resulted in "bona-fide" fishers being excluded.
However, small-scale fishers feared that although the court process might help resolve some of the issues pertaining to the process, they could wait another long period before the process was concluded.
They also called for an “improved basket package” to give meaning “to transformation and redress” and warned that the small-scale fishing industry was in “crisis” nationally.
South Africa's fishing industry contributes as much as R3 billion to the GDP and employs more than 15 000 people.
Despite some reforms, small-scale fishers said they were still "prejudiced" in terms of allocation of fishing rights.
“I don't want anything to do with fishing anymore. It will take another 20 years before they get this allocation process right. The initial one was unfair. Some traditional fishermen didn’t make the final list, while others who were not small-scale fishers were added to it. I have given up now. I would rather sit on my stoep,” said a Paternoster former small-scale fisher, who identified himself as Joshua.
A spokesperson for SA Small-scale Fisheries Collective, Christian Adams, said the organisation was planning to seek legal advice and consult as widely as possible regarding the department's move.
Adams said they were not happy with the current fishing rights as they made it difficult for them to be economically viable. He said some West Coast fishers with lobster fishing rights had to travel to St Helena Bay instead of the close Dassen Island.
“While we understand the need for the review process, it will take years before the fishers are allocated new rights. The process must be fair, and equitable,“ Adams added.
Adams also called for the inclusion of small-scale fishers in decisions made by the government on their future.
"The policy calls for a co-management structure. We are yet to establish one," he added.
Small-scale fishers in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape questioned why they were not included in the application for the review process as they too had been subjected to the same initial process.
Spokesperson for Coastal Links in the Eastern Cape, Fikile Jonas, said there was no consultation from the department before the legal action.
"The problems identified in the Western Cape are similar to in the other three provinces. We have trust problems with the department and these need to be resolved urgently," Jonas said.
In November 2019, the department announced the granting of 15-year rights to 20 small-scale fishing co-operatives in the Eastern Cape , and in March last year an additional 52 co-operatives received rights.
Fifteen of the co-operatives were granted squid fishing rights.
But Jonas said the fishers still did not have access to the basket resources they were promised as they were still waiting for licences.
Jonas said the co-ops did not receive training and this had left them open to "unscrupulous attempts by big companies to exploit them".
He said the department could not "continue making decisions for us without us".
The department said steps would be taken to minimise the impact of the court application on fishing communities in the Western Cape. It promised to prioritise the new verification process and conduct it as "swiftly as possible“.
Department spokesperson Zolile Nqayi said no audit process took place in the other three provinces as it was made aware of challenges by "individuals".
"The decision of the department to conduct an audit in the Western Cape was based on specific complaints received by the minister when she was conducting public engagements in fishing communities," Nqayi said.
He said in KZN some fishers, who had recreational permits and who did not apply for small-scale rights, wanted to be afforded an opportunity to do so.
"We’ve agreed that in the 2022/23 financial year, we will reopen small-scale rights applications for new applicants to enter this space," added Nqayi.
He said the department was also assessing all the complaints, and appropriate interventions would be determined and communicated to all affected communities.
Nqayi said squid permits would only be issued to small-scale fishing co-operatives after the finalisation of the pending appeal by the South African Squid Management Industrial Association.
The organisation lodged an appeal with the minister in August following the proposed 25% allocation of the Total Allowable Catch for squid to small-scale fishers.
Weekend Argus