Katchatheevu: Lost lives and livelihood

Even as the issue has been the cornerstone of Tamilnadu’s politics for over three decades, the ordeals, that the Indian fishermen from Ramnathapuram face, are far from over. Will they ever get their answers?

Bhuvanesh Chandar

(Originally written in January 2020 as a part of my ACJ curriculum)

The sea wasn’t welcoming to a 12-year-old Sesuraj who had to quit school to fend for a family that was burdened with heavy financial losses. Times have changed. Sesuraj, 51 now, is the President of All-Mechanised Boats Association of Ramnathapuram, and yet the seas are as unwelcoming as ever.

The seemingly everlasting issue between the Sri Lankan Navy and the Indian fishermen from Tamil Nadu has cost Sesuraj a lifetime of effort and money. “Till 1983, everything was alright. We had the 1974 agreement which allowed both the country’s fishermen to use the Katchatheevu Island, and sometimes Sri Lankan fishermen used to come to Rameshwaram to dry their produce and so forth. The problem started after the 1983 civil war in Sri Lanka, and the Sri Lankan Navy began to identify us as Tamil fishermen and not as Indian fishermen. They thought we were trying to help the Sri Lankan Tamils and so they began attacking us. They wouldn’t even enquire or verify who we were; they would just start shooting at us”, says Sesuraj.

Katchatheevu, that Sesuraj mentions, has been the disputed part of the Indian Ocean, which is called as a fisherman’s gold mine. It is here, that the Indian fishermen, ‘trespass’ into the international boundaries and get attacked by the Sri Lankan Navy. “For a fisherman in the wide ocean, there are no boundaries. When we search desperately for fish, we won’t know where the border is. We’ll just move to the place where we will get more fish”, he answers. He points out that the lack of space to fish is the major reason for the alleged ‘trespassing’. “There are 12 nautical miles between Sri Lanka and India. Law states that for the first three nautical miles from the shore, we aren’t supposed to use our mechanised boats. Then for the next five nautical miles, the ocean is filled with rocks and we can’t fish there. What remains is the four nautical miles to fish. Across Pamban, Rameshwaram and Mandapam, there are some 2000 mechanised boats. How will that space be enough for all of us?”

Sesuraj recounted the time when he was arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy. “I have been beaten up more than 10 times. When I got arrested, they took me to the Mannar islands, tied me to a tree and beat me up. One other time, I was critically admitted to the hospital and narrowly escaped death.” This has been the usual scene for the fishermen here and the situation doesn’t seem to be getting any better.

Alex, another fisherman from Rameshwaram, detailed the way the Sri Lankan Navy use intimidation tactics, first, to chase away the Indian fishermen, and how it escalates into unimaginable violence and destruction.

“First, they’ll blow their horns and ask us to leave. What they won’t understand is that to even fetch and wrap our fishing nets, it’ll take around 15 to 20 mins. They’ll lose patience and they’ll slam their boats into ours. Their boats are huge and are made up of heavy steel, while our trawlers are wooden. The Navy men will then jump into our boats and slash our nets. Each of our nets cost around a lakh, and if we take any step to retrieve our nets, the tension will escalate. They might seize our boats, dash at our boats or even shoot at us. Of late, for a few years, the shootings have stopped, but one can never be sure about it”.

In March, this year, the director of State Fisheries Department, G.S. Sameeran, in an appalling statement, said that only 28 fishermen were killed in the last three decades, directly contradicting even the 2012 report by the State Government, which noted that around 85 fishermen have been killed in the 20 years preceding 2012. However, several media reports suggest that the actual number might be in high hundreds.

A huge criticism against the Indian fishermen is their bottom trawling method of fishing which has been banned in many countries except India. This method of trawling, not only proves to be an eco-hazard, but it also takes away all the fish from the Sri Lankan waters, leaving almost nothing for the Sri Lankan fishermen. “Method of fishing develops in tune with the technological advancement of a nation. We used to walk, but slowly there were cycles, bikes, cars, etc. Similarly, we used to ride in boats made up of wood, then came country boats, and finally now we are using mechanised boats. Late Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Mr. M.G. Ramachandran resolved the issue between the Indian mechanised boat fishermen and the fishermen who used country boats. Similarly, this issue has to be resolved in a way that both Sri Lankan and Indian fishermen will have ample supply to fish. All we ask is just two days every week to fish near Katchatheevu. They can fish for five days there”, says Sesuraj. He also admits to the eco-hazard caused to the marine life and responds that they have requested the government to extend the fishing ban during April and May to unhamper the breeding of fish. “You can even have two more months in a year to cultivate fish. All we are asking if for 112 days out of 365 days. Even out of that, due to strikes and storms, we lose another 40-50 days and what we are left with is 70 days. It is for these 70 days that we are in constant talks with Sri Lanka.”

The last official talk about the issue was held in 2014. Feeling hopeless about the politicians, who he says are just using the fishermen as vote banks, Sesuraj and a few more representatives from the Indian fishing community met the then President of Sri Lanka, Maithripala Sirisena, on their own accord. Being a part of something this big, Sesuraj reminisces the days when he regretted choosing this profession. “I’ve made sure that my children are educated. I don’t want them to enter this profession and suffer like I did”.

“We are the unofficial coast guards of our nation, who don’t get paid for their services. Even the coastguards don’t guard the ocean borders all the time, but we are here 24*7 and this is how we are treated. Even Pakistan, which is an enemy nation, releases the soldiers and fishermen who get captured, but Sri Lanka, which is quoted as a friendly nation, shoots at sight.”

Where does he think this hopelessness leads them? What does the future hold for the Indian fishermen?

“If the government keeps ignoring our plight, and if at all a day has to come when our traditional field of work has to perish, all of us will gather and recapture what is rightfully ours. All trawler fishermen from Rameshwaram to Kanyakumari will wage war against the Sri Lanka-held Katchatheevu. I hope that day never comes.”

Will fire extinguish fire? Is war the only option left to end this menacing birth child of another war?