Pakistan: Baloch leaders discuss ways to prevent fishing by illegal trawlers

Feb 01, 2022

Balochistan [Pakistan], February 1 : Amid ongoing talks over plans to restart the Gwadar protest, a meeting was held under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary Balochistan Mathar Niaz Rana about the prevention of fishing by illegal trawlers.
The protest which started in November last year came to a halt in December after the government agreed to the demands of the people protesting the illegal fishing of trawlers in Gwadar.
The major demand was to ban the illegal fishing of trawlers at the Makran Coast and to protect the rights of fishermen of Gwadar and other areas of Balochistan.
At this latest meeting, attended by top officers of the provincial government, it was revealed that the illegal trawlers have reappeared in the waters of Balochistan.
According to vernacular media reports, their appearance has disappointed the local fishermen, for which they blame trawlers coming from Sindh province.
Local authorities said that they are patrolling the sea but few trawlers can still enter the sea because we don't have coordination with other security agencies.

Bashir Ahmed Mandai, the Deputy Chief of Jamaat-e-Islami, Balochistan said that their party is with the 'give rights' campaign. People are just asking for their basic human rights, relaxation in business and trade restrictions and basic facilities for the citizens, he added.
A top Baloch leader has warned the provincial government in Balochistan that if the deal the government signed with the leaders of the 'Gwadar movement' for ending the protest is not implemented, they would organize a long march against it in Quetta.
Speaking at a presser on Monday, Baloch leader Maulana Hidayatur Rehman said besides many other demands, the recovery of missing persons was also included in the accord, the Dawn newspaper reported.
Analysts say that the recently-held Gwadar protests were an indication of resentment of local people against harsh Chinese policies in the region.