Madridejos officials face illegal fishing raps

Charges will be filed in court today against the captain, crew, one barangay councilman and the owner of a commercial fishing vessel that was seized off Malapascua Island in Daanbantayan at 5:30 a.m. last Thursday.

The vessel and her crew led by their captain Rogelio Forrosuello tried to avoid arrest but were eventually apprehended by the provincial task force on illegal fishing and a Bantay Dagat team between Isla de Gato and Carnaza Island.

Task Force chief Loy Madrigal said the vessel’s crew dropped ropes into the waters to entangle the task force’s outboard motor but to no avail.

“They tried to resist arrest and endangered the lives of our crew,” he told Cebu Daily News.

About 20 of the vessel’s crew were apprehended including Forrosuello, a barangay councilman of Tabagak, Madridejos town, in the nearby island of Bantayan.
‘Hulbot’

The vessel is registered in the name of Tabagak barangay chairman Julius Villaceran.

He said the Daanbantayan municipal government will press charges against the barangay captainVillaceran, Forrosuello and the vessel’s crew for fishing within 15 kilometers from a town or city’s shoreline.

Madrigal said the crew was using “hulbot-hulbot”” a fishing method declared illegal by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).

Inquest proceedings will be held today at the Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Bogo City, he said.

“Mayor (Augusto Corro) was there when we turned over the arrested men to them and they will pursue charges. They didn’t agree to settle the matter and just pay,” Madrigal said.

Biodiversity

He said they will also file charges against teh barangay officials before the Ombudsman-Visayas.

Malapascua Island is popular with diving enthusiasts for its rich dive spots and pristine white sand beaches.

It is home to a rich marine biodiversity and the presence of Thresher Sharks and Hammerheads.

Madrigal said they teamed with the town’s Bantay Dagat after receiving a tip from local fisherfolk who complained about the vessel’s presence in the municipal waters of the town.

He said the group is known in the area to be “hulbot“ fishers, an illegal fishing practice due to the potential damage it poses to underwater resources.

Destructive

Madrigal said they were able to confiscate gill nets, scare ropes and tom weights from the crew of the vessel.

Eight buckets each containing 35 to 40 kilos of assorted fish were also recovered.

“Hulbot-hulbot” or the Danish Siene fishing method involves throwing a large rock or tom weight tied to a net into the sea and dragging it underwater.

The practice is considered environmentally destructive since the weights can ruin coral reefs, the spawning ground of fish and other marine creatures.

“They don’t want to move far from the shore to save crude oil. So they just fish within the prohibited areas to make more profit. The fisherfolk of Daanbantayan are very happy with the arrest. Due to these vessels, nothing is left for them,” Madrigal said.

The Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998 bans the use of “hulbot-hulbot” within municipal waters or 15 kilometers (km) from the shoreline.

A provincial ordinance also prohibits catching of fish within 15 kilometers from a town or city’s shores.

Recently, Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III called on residents in northern Cebu particularly in Bantayan Island to be more vigilant on guarding municipal waters from “hulbot” fishers.