
206 fishing boat engines confiscated from Jaffna fishermen by Sri Lankan Navy
Sri Lankan Navy confiscated large number of fishing equipment from Kurunagar fishermen in Jaffna. On 9 October large number of Sri Lankan Navy men went to the Kurunagar coastline and took away all the 206 boat engines and fishing boats.
 The Sri Lankan Navy recently imposed ban on keeping any kind of fishing equipment at the coastline as is the tradition of the fishermen. This ban follows various other bans on fishing imposed by the Sri Lankan Navy throughout the ceasefire period and intensified more recently. The livelihood of the Jaffna fishermen has been eroded with the earlier restrictions, then the night curfew and now the latest ban on keeping equipment at the coast line. The confiscation of the equipment in the Kurunagar coastline follows threats by the Sri Lankan Navy, a few days ago, to the fishermen of Kurunagar, Navanthurai, Pasaiyoor, and Columbuthurai, that they must hand over to the Sri Lankan Navy 300 fishing boats with engines and persons to operate it.
10 October 2006
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