Twenty illegal Vietnamese fishermen detained

Vietnamese fisherwomen in Pursat province.

By Khmerization

Twenty illegal Vietnamese fishermen were detained on 20th October after they crossed to fish in Cambodian waters off the coast of Kampot province, but were immediately released, reports everyday.com.

Mr. Sor Sarin, Kampot fishery official, said officials from his department, in co-operation with border police from unit 302, detained the 20 Vietnamese fishermen who were seen catching fish in the protected fishery areas at Lok village, Reussey commune in Kampong Trach disrict.

He said the Governor of Kampot province had advised his men to release them with the conditions that they will not return to fish in the areas again. And after all their fishing equipments had been confiscated as evidences, they were all sent back to Vietnam through the border areas where they had illegally entered Cambodian territory.

According to Radio Free Asia, on the same day 200 Cambodian fishermen in Kampot had protested in front of the provincial town hall against illegal Vietnamese fishermen who came with their big boats to fish in Cambodian waters.

Mr. Ell Ngeth, a representative of the Cambodian fishermen, said the illegal actions of the Vietnamese fishermen make the life of the Cambodian fishermen harder. "The Vietnamese came to drag their nets in shallow waters where our fishermen used to fish. Now it is very difficult to make a living. We cannot catch any fish now", he said.

Prum Dulkarim, another fisherman, said: "They came to take our livelihood, they brought big boats into the Cambodian waters and our Cambodian fishermen cannot make a living. The number of fish had decreased dramatically."

After the protest, the provincial authority agreed to meet with representatives of the fishermen and made a promise that they will crack down on the Vietnamese illegal fishermen.

Mrs. Try Chhuon, local human rights official, said Cambodian fishermen had protested against Vietnamese fishing illegally in Cambodian waters many times before, but the Cambodian authority ignored their complaints and still allow the Vietnamese fishermen to fish in Cambodian waters illegally.

The 200 protesters said they will go to protest in Phnom Penh if provincial authority did not take any future actions against the illegal Vietnamese fishermen.