EDITORIAL - Social injustice

Small-scale rice farmers are groaning from the flood of imports following the drastic cut in tariffs, as part of a so far futile effort of the government to bring down rice prices.

Now it’s the turn of small-scale fishers to express alarm over a threat to their livelihood. A coalition of small-scale fishers, farmers, organized labor, religious, students and environmental advocates is asking the Department of Agriculture to appeal a Supreme Court ruling that allowed commercial fishing within 15 kilometers from the country’s shores. These municipal waters have long been reserved for marginalized fishing operations using small boats.

On Dec. 19, the Supreme Court upheld a ruling of the Malabon Regional Trial Court, which granted a petition of Mercidar Fishing Corp. to allow commercial fishing in municipal waters. The SC ruled that giving small-scale fishers preferential access to municipal waters was unconstitutional. Up to two million registered municipal fisherfolk and a majority of subsistence fishers are expected to see their livelihoods adversely affected by the SC ruling.

The SC has had its share of controversial decisions. It had previously also ruled that there is no such thing as premature election campaigning in this country, even after certificates of candidacy have already been filed. It also gave free rein to the posting of campaign materials, regardless of size, within private property, citing it as an exercise of freedom of expression. This ruling rendered laughable the designation of common poster display areas by the Commission on Elections. The Comelec has expressed concern that because of the SC ruling, private entities could sell space in their properties for political advertising in the guise of freedom of expression even during the official campaign period.

The SC, citing laws passed by Congress, also put an end to the constitutional ideal of making the party-list system a tool for marginalized representation. The party list has degenerated into a farce.

Now comes the SC ruling on marginalized fisherfolk. Small-scale fishers have expressed concern that with the ruling, fishing in up to 90 percent of municipal waters will be controlled by commercial fishing enterprises with large vessels. Whether the Department of Agriculture, which has jurisdiction over fisheries, will appeal the SC ruling is uncertain, considering that the family of the DA chief owns one of the largest commercial fishing enterprises in the country.

A spokesperson for the Kaakbay coalition of non-government organizations decried the SC ruling, saying, “The issue here is social justice. The ruling placed the poor and marginalized municipal fishers in a pitiful oppressive situation.”

Small-scale rice farmers have been issuing similar laments. If the government is serious in liberating marginalized workers in the agriculture sector from poverty, it should heed their concerns.