The Hon. Thurairasa Ravikaran

¶ 01 Greetings, Hon. Chairman!

¶ 02 In the Committee Stage Debate on allocations for the Ministry of Fisheries, Aquatic Resources and Marine Resources—an area that contributes significantly to nutrition, employment, food security, foreign exchange and revenue—I wish to place on record issues in the Vanni District that still require redress.

¶ 03 The fisheries sector contributes about 1% to GDP annually and 2.4% to export earnings this year. More than 50% of animal protein intake in Sri Lanka comes from seafood—three times the global average. Over a million Sri Lankans directly or indirectly depend on fisheries. Coastal, offshore/deep-sea, inland fisheries and aquaculture all play vital roles. Yet the strength of the sector is uneven, especially access to the northern sea is highly irregular.

¶ 04 According to the Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (2024), the Northern Sea contributed 16% of total national catch last year. But compared with its resource base, the contribution is far too low. Locally continuing illegal methods and the cross-border intrusion by Indian trawlers depleting resources are major challenges. IUU fishing causes an estimated US$26–50 billion global annual economic loss (Department report, 2020).

¶ 05 While I welcome the 2026 Budget proposals—harbour development, boatyard rehabilitation, gear support, inland fisheries promotion, awareness programmes and research—I urge the Hon. Minister to give stronger focus to curbing factors that degrade resources and threaten both fishers’ livelihoods and ecosystem sustainability.

¶ 06 In this House, challenges faced by northern fishers have been raised many times. It is disappointing the Government has not shown commensurate attention. These unresolved issues continue to impact over a hundred thousand families depending on the sea. Trawling, light-assisted night fishing, blast fishing and purse-seine/encircling with illegal small-mesh nets are all prohibited under Sri Lankan law, yet persist, severely degrading marine resources—particularly in the North and East.

¶ 07 Although laws exist, enforcement remains weak. Those who comply with the law are punished while violators go free; livelihoods are disrupted. As illegal practices go unchecked, more take them up daily in the Northern waters. Those using banned methods land hundreds of kilograms and profit, while traditional fishers who catch only 5–10 kg often cannot even cover fuel costs.

¶ 08 In Mullaitivu in 2024, the reported marine catch was 12,335 metric tons. How much of this was taken using illegal lights at night, explosives, or illegal encircling nets? Do you have that breakdown? Traditional fishers often return with such low catches that they cannot cover fuel. Whom is this Government protecting and whom is it betraying? The unfolding reality suggests the Government is enabling corruption in fisheries. The Minister in charge pledged that these methods would be totally banned in Sri Lanka by 2025. Hon. Minister, will you fulfill your promise? Do not allow those who fish with respect for the law and the sea to starve under your watch.

¶ 09 It is the Government’s obligation to curb continuous incursions by Indian trawlers within Sri Lankan waters. These intrusions question our sovereignty. The sea is not an unregulated open-access space; it is the livelihood ground of Northern fishers—today and for future generations. It is our collective responsibility to conserve it for the future.

¶ 10 Section 27(1) of the Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Act, No. 2 of 1996, prohibits introducing poison, explosives or stupefying substances (including dynamite) or other harmful materials into Sri Lankan waters for the purpose of poisoning, killing, stunning, or disabling fish or aquatic life, or attempting to do so. Yet in Mullaitivu, such banned techniques are still practiced, even within the Northern sea area. Section 28 further prohibits possession, transport, landing, buying, or selling such substances, and bans keeping prohibited fishing gear or using prohibited methods in local fishing vessels. Nevertheless, these things are brought ashore, sold, bought and used. Despite the involvement of the Navy, Coast Guard, Department of Fisheries, NARA and the Defence Ministry, neither the illegal practices of local fishers nor the cross-border intrusions have been contained.

¶ 11 When fishers complain to the Assistant Director, Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Mullaitivu, they are told there is inadequate manpower—this is what fishers tell us repeatedly. If all security structures together cannot control it, and if the Assistant Director truly lacks staff, then provide adequate personnel and resources now. If you still lack staff, we, together with law-abiding fishers, will come to your Department and demand enforcement. Every lapse compels us to point to the LTTE’s “shadow administration” as a contrast: during that period there were no Indian incursions beyond the maritime boundary, nor did Sri Lankan fishers dare use banned practices there. Why is it that what was enforced then cannot be enforced by a sovereign Government today?

¶ 12 Coastal mineral sand extraction attempts are ongoing in several places. From the Kokkilai estuary along about 44 acres—encompassing 32 families’ coastal net-laying grounds, seasonal paddy fields and manawari lands—areas in Mullaitivu’s Kokkilai have been fenced off and acquired for mineral sand mining. After extraction, sea water intruded inland, disrupting livelihoods, and proper backfilling and remedial works have not been carried out. In addition to the 44 acres acquired, about 20 acres of earlier ancestral Tamil lands have been settled by Sinhalese people.

¶ 13 Now similar extraction plans are again being pursued in coastal stretches of Mullaitivu—especially in Semmalai East and Alampil-Uduppukulam. When officials for coastal sand studies visited Alampil Kurusady on 31.07.2024—representatives from the Coast Conservation Department, Central Environmental Authority, Water Resources Board, Geological Survey and Mines Bureau, Divisional Secretariat Land Officer, Lanka Mineral Sands Ltd., Department of Wildlife Conservation, Supply Management and the Grama Niladhari—people’s strong protests forced them to turn back. That day, the initial move to survey, acquire a coastal strip roughly 300 metres inland over about 10 km from Alampil Kurusady to Thirthekarai for mineral sand mining was stopped by the public.

¶ 14 Hon. Chairman, the Mullaitivu coastline stretches about 75 km from Kokkilai to Chundikulam. If such acquisitions occur all along, where will fishers work? What is the Government’s answer for their livelihoods? In Mannar, similar initial surveys for mineral sand extraction—such as in Pesalai—were also halted by public protests.

¶ 15 I wish to quote a song the Hon. Minister too would know: “Across the deep sea, the Chola Maha Raja once ruled; Today, in Tamil Eelam’s seas, our Karikalan strides. Sing that dawn has broken! The Sangam age has returned—rejoice!”

¶ 16 The Tamil people of the North and East celebrated the leadership in that manner. Under that administration, there were no Indian trawler incursions, no illegal fishing, fishers worked happily, there were no land grabs, agriculture thrived, there were no narcotics, and women could move freely even at midnight. People lived safely and self-sufficiently in their homeland.

¶ 17 Hon. Thurairasa Ravikaran: Please give me 30 seconds!

¶ 18 For these reasons, Tamils regard the Leader as a god and that period as a Sangam age. Today is the birthday of that Tamil nation’s leader. In this august Assembly, I extend birthday wishes to Hon. Velupillai Prabhakaran. Thank you.