Fishermen in coastal Binh Thuan, especially in Tuy Phong and Phan Thiet, are facing significant disruption due to illegal sea occupation. Households and groups are brazenly using palm trees and rafts to create aquaculture zones, hindering traditional fishing activities and causing disorder.
In the sea area of Chi Cong Commune of Binh Thuan Province’s Tuy Phong District, various sections of the sea surface are now demarcated by ropes, stakes, and assorted materials.
Local residents and community groups have constructed makeshift shelters for razor clams by repurposing materials like plastic barrels, foam boxes, and tires into artificial palm trees along the zoned coastal areas. Additionally, some households have also built rafts for aquaculture using plastic barrels, wooden structures, and other recycled items.
These people who occupied the sea surface posted guards, and erected signs forbidding local fishermen, including divers, from harvesting seafood in the area. When the fishermen attempted to access the occupied waters, they were driven off by strangers, severely impacting the livelihoods of the community, a local resident reported.
A similar circumstance have been taking place in the sea off Mui Ne Ward, Phan Thiet City, where numerous households and groups discarded dozens of palm trees and cages made of environmentally harmful materials into the water. This debris disrupted fishing activities and posed obstacles to boats navigating the area.
Many fishermen in the sea areas of Chi Cong Commune and Mui Ne Ward complained that the diving career of some local residents is being impacted when the sea surface was covered with palm trees, cages, and ropes. Plus, it causes dangerous incidents for fishermen.
According to statistics from the Binh Thuan Provincial Police, more than 100 unlawful aquaculture clusters have emerged along the coastal area from Chi Cong Commune to Binh Thanh Commune in Tuy Phong District. In Mui Ne Ward of Phan Thiet City, the practice of purchasing small clams, enclosing areas, constructing palm tree structures and rafts for farming, and assigning guards to prevent fishermen from harvesting has become increasingly complex.
In an effort to combat the ongoing issue, the Economic Security Division of Binh Thuan Provincial Police and Tuy Phong District Police, in collaboration with relevant agencies, have organized four removal operations, resulting in the voluntary dismantling of roughly 80 palm tree structures. Despite these efforts, the illegal occupation of the sea for aquaculture persists, obstructing maritime traffic and posing a threat to the safety of fishermen.
Amid the above-mentioned complicated situation, fishermen voiced their expectation that authorities and responsible agencies of Binh Thuan Province will review the state management of marine aquaculture and protection of aquatic resources as well as take measures to curb violations against encroachment on the sea surface.
Concurrently, relevant authorities are urged to complete marine aquaculture planning and project development to provide guidance and facilitate legal aquatic product cultivation at sea, thereby stabilizing fishermen's livelihoods and mitigating potential security and order complications.
