MELAKA – The Melaka government will take tougher action against ships anchored in the state’s fishing zone, state Rural Development, Agriculture and Food Security Committee chairman Muhamad Akmal Saleh said.
He said ships have been violating laws announced and gazetted by the state and federal governments enforced quite some time ago.
“We are taking this seriously as it is causing hardships to local fishermen, especially those using drift nets. So in the next two weeks, we will ask the state Marine Department to brief our fishermen on this and at the same time conduct more monitoring.
“Fishermen are also requested to immediately report to the Marine Department if they know of ships anchoring in the fishing zone,” he told reporters after attending a Hari Raya Aidilfitri event with local fishermen in Tg Kling here today.
He said the same focus will be given to marine park areas, especially in Pulau Undan, where a number of fishermen are still confused about the zones in which they are allowed to haul their nets.
Pulau Undan, Pulau Nangka, and Pulau Dodol were gazetted as the first national marine park in Melaka last year. – Bernama, May 13, 2023
