FIRST IT WAS THE PORTS, THEN THE MARINE ENVIRONMENT, AND NOW...
Johor fishermen complain about S'pore land reclamation

Saying their livelihood has been badly hit, the fishermen voice concern over depleting marine resources in the Johor Strait

JOHOR BARU - Over 1,000 Johor fishermen claimed to have suffered losses which ran into thousands of ringgit because of land reclamation work by Singapore.

The coastal fishermen said their livelihoods had been badly hit since 1999, when the Republic embarked on its reclamation project in Tuas, which is just across Tanjung Kupang.

They said the work had impeded the natural water currents in the Johor Strait.

Recently, Johor complained that the reclamation works were encroaching on Malaysian terrority and that the water quality and marine life were affected.

It also claimed that the reclamation of Pulau Tekong narrowed shipping lanes and discouraged ships from calling at Malaysia's Pasir Gudang Port.

Singapore has said that reclamation works being carried out are entirely within its territorial waters - and the issue of encroachment upon Malaysian territory does not arise.

And Kuala Lumpur has said ships using the Pasir Gudang Port in Johor are not expected to face problems following the reclamation.

Tanjung Kupang fisherman Abdul Kadir Awang Chik, 58, said the reclamation in Tuas had impeded and altered the natural sea flow in the straits.

'Before this, the fishermen could reap rich marine resources like fish and prawns from the natural water flow,' Mr Abdul Kadir, who has been a fisherman for over 40 years, said.

He said that before 1999, he and other fishermen in the area could earn as much as RM3,000 (S$1,450) a month, but now even making RM500 a month was difficult.

As there was little fish to catch these days, hundreds of fishermen had stopped going out to sea and were looking for other work, he said.

Mr Hussein Atan, 51, who is head of Kampung Tanjung Adang, said that many fishermen in the village were facing hardship due to the depleting marine resources in the straits.

A fisherman for over 20 years, he said the reclamation work had 'miniaturised' their fishing area.

He said the Johor fishermen now had to compete with fishermen from Singapore, who he claimed had intruded into Johor waters as their fishing zone had been taken over for reclamation work.

Another fisherman from Tanjung Adang, Mr Hamdan Atan, said his fishing net had been damaged as the floating fragmented corals and moss had got stuck.

Barges which ferried sand to the reclamation zone also tore the nets, he added.

'We hope the government would do something about land reclamation as it has badly affected our livelihood,' he said. --Bernama