NOT all local fishermen support House Bill 23-5 which would allow gillnet fishing in the Saipan lagoon.
Robert P. Reyes, 48, believes that gill fishing or tekking “will do more harm than good.”
In a letter to the bill’s author, Rep. Denita Yangetmai, Reyes said he is a fisherman by trade and has been fishing in the waters surrounding Saipan since he was 10 years old.
Reyes said tekking used to be legal, but the island’s population back then was “less than half” of what it is today.
By the mid-1990s, he said fishing had changed. “I could not catch a good size fish inside the lagoon anymore. I had to fish outside the reef to get a decent size fish, [so] fishing became hard and dangerous, especially for small boat owners,” Reyes added.
He said he witnessed the destruction caused by gillnet fishing in the CNMI.
“Thank God our former leaders realized the effects of fishing with gillnet…and did something about it. They made it unlawful for both commercial and non-commercial use,” Reyes said.
He said gillnet fishing could deplete fish population, damage corals and the eco-system.
He said it will benefit only a few but harm all, and fishermen will have to go farther to catch fish “therefore risking their lives.”
Reyes said he has spoken to “a lot of fishermen” in the CNMI, and they, too, oppose H.B. 23-5.
He said rod and reel fishing, spear fishing, bottom fishing, trolling and talaya or throw net fishing are good enough and will not deplete the fish population. They also teach “our children to have patience, discipline, knowledge and respect for what our islands resources can provide,” he said.
Proponents of the bill said gillnet fishing is eco-friendly and sustainable.
Rep. Denita Yangetmai speaks during a press conference on Wednesday at the Carolinian Village pavilion in Garapan.
