Fisheries Ministry urged to pay compensation to Jaffna Fishermen

[TamilNet, Friday, 14 September 2007, 11:20 GMT]
A demonstration was held in Colombo Wednesday evening in front of the office of the Sri Lankan Fisheries Ministry urging the government to pay a sum of Rupees Five Thousand as monthly relief to fishermen of Jaffna district who have lost their livelihood as they have been prevented from fishing due to security situation. The National Fishermen Co-ordination Forum (NFCF) organized the protest, sources said.

Hundred of fishermen from all parts of Sri Lanka participated in the protest, and large number of police personnel was deployed at the site to maintain law and order, media reports said.

Other demands put forward by the NFCF demanded the government to take immediate steps to stop foreign trawlers entering the Sri Lankan sea territory for fishing.

The demands also includeed that the SL Government should provide fuel subsidy to fishermen to cushion the price increase of fuel, media reports said.