The resolution opposing the draft guidelines was passed by 32 mayors from different parts of the country in an online forum organized by different civil society groups under the Pangingisda Natin Gawing Tama (PaNaGaT) network. The resolution was submitted to the National Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Council (NFARMC) which is deliberating the proposed rules of delineation of the municipal waters. In a study conducted by non-government group Oceana, almost 30 local government units stand to lose more than 50 percent of their municipal waters, leaving offshore island communities at the mercy of commercial fishing. The local governments admitted the challenge they face of not having enough resources to effectively monitor and enforce the law in their territorial waters. However, the mayors invoke the amended Fisheries Code’s provisions for monitoring, control and surveillance using technology as effective tools to run after illegal commercial fishing operations in the municipal waters.

Source: Manila Times October 22, 2020 16:44 UTC