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FROM
CUBA
Cuban
authorities confiscate several fishing boats in
Holguín province
HOLGUÍN, Cuba, September 16 (www.cubanet.org)
- Several fishermen around Moa, in Holguín
province, were issued fines of between 1,500 and
5,000 pesos and had their boats confiscated at
the end of August after being charged with fishing
without a license by fisheries inspectors.
The boats, small diesel-powered craft about 15
feet long, had been built by their owners as far
back as 1988 and were legally registered. They
didn't have the permits for commercial fishing,
only those for sports fishing.
One of the fishermen said: "We built the
boat in 1988 at a high cost, with a government
permit, and since then we have been waiting for
the promised fishing license. We have the sports
fishing permit, for which we pay one peso a month,
and five pesos a month for dockage. We also stand
watch at night at the docks. To whom are we going
to complain?
Boat-building and fishing by private citizens
are generally forbidden in Cuba. Some authorizations
are issued for sports fishing, with a limitation
of 66 pounds for family consumption. Sales of
the fish are also forbidden.
Large-scale fishing is exclusively controlled
by the government. The catch is handled through
the fishing coops, which sort it, sending first
class produce to feed the tourist trade, and sell
the third class product sporadically to the population.
One of the fishermen who was fined said, after
asking not to be named for fear of more reprisals:
"How am I going to pay a 5,000 peso fine
on a 140-peso-a-month pension? They are killing
us. This is the only means of subsistence for
our family."
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