More poachers enter Phl waters after killing of Taiwanese fisherman

BASCO, Batanes, Philippines – Following the May 9 shooting of a suspected Taiwanese poacher in Balintang Channel, poachers have become bold in trespassing into Philippine waters, according to a town mayor in Batanes.

Mayor Reul Ibañez of Itbayat said poachers on one occasion fired a flare that almost hit the fishing boat of one of his constituents.  “There is not a single week that poachers are not seen within our rich fishing grounds,” he said. “At times, there are at least 20 foreign fishing vessels amassing in Ditarem or Mavudis Islands.”

Ibañez said prior to the shooting incident, it was very seldom that his constituents would see poachers fishing within their island-municipality. “Following that incident coupled by the suspension of hiring and deployment of Filipino overseas workers to Taiwan, these poachers have been emboldened into entering our waters,” he said.

During a recent meeting, the Provincial Peace and Order Council (PPOC) disclosed that poachers have been harassing local fishermen in   waters adjacent to the uninhabited islands of Mavudis and Ditarem north of Itbayat town.

George Peralta, Uyugan Fishermen’s Association president, has asked maritime police to patrol the islands to scare the poachers away and to show resistance to their illegal activities.