Does exclusion of fishermen from decision-making places on the future of oceans prefigure the end of fishing?
At the Brest summit, where hundreds of people spoke to discuss the future of the oceans, no fisherman’s representative was invited, even as an auditor; it took a last-minute request for a representative to be allowed to attend. This has been the case for 40 years,,, Sustainable fishing is based on democracy. However, on the other hand, for 30 years, very powerful forces, outside the world of fishermen, have called into question these democratic processes of control and management of resources and have implemented “market policies”: multinationals, banks, insurance companies, associated with liberal foundations and ENGOs, themselves supported by well-known and widely funded scientists. Tom Wathen of the Pew Foundation wrote in 1993: “For huge sums of money it is possible to shape public opinion, mobilise voters, research issues and pressure public officials, all in a symphonic arrangement. This explains the wave of authoritarian decisions, from the ban on drift nets, the ban on seal hunting, to the current and future threats of a ban on fishing on 30% and then 50% of the oceans,,, >click to read< 13:12
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