Fisherfolk and civil society advocates have lobbied for the filing and immediate passage of three proposed fisheries bills to establish stronger protection for small and artisanal fishers.
“Hindi limos ang hinihingi ng maliliit na mangingisda. Ang hinihingi namin ay karapatan, proteksyon, at katarungan. Kung ang dagat ang bumubuhay sa bayan, dapat ang unang pinangangalagaan ay ang mangingisdang nagtataguyod nito,” said Ka “Dodoy” Roberto Ballon, chairperson of the Katipunan ng mga Kilusang Artisanong Mangingisda sa Pilipinas (KKampi).
The fishers group urged members of the 20th Congress to “act urgently on measures that protect the lives, livelihoods, and rights of small fishers, who remain among the poorest sectors despite their crucial role in food security and coastal resource protection.”
Key Bill: Bida ang Mangingisdang Artisano sa Kinse Kilometro
At the center of the lobby is the proposed “Bida ang Mangingisdang Artisano sa Kinse Kilometro” Bill. The proposed legislative measure seeks to uphold fishermen’s preferential rights within the 15-kilometer municipal waters, and provide a national framework for fisherfolk settlement areas, security of tenure, protection against arbitrary displacement, climate-resilient coastal housing, and sustainable livelihoods.
Recognition of Women in Fisheries
The bills also give strong recognition to women in fisheries, whose work remains largely invisible despite their central role in fishing households and local fisheries economies. Women mend nets, prepare fishing gears, process and dry fish, sell catch, manage household economies, engage in gleaning, seaweed farming, organizing, and coastal resource protection, according to the statement from women-led fisherfolks group Samahan ng Mangingisdang Kababaihan ng Macalelon.
“Women must no longer be treated as invisible workers in the fisheries sector,” said Miriam Petalcorin, of the said fishers’ group. “Ang kababaihan sa pangisdaan ay hindi lang katuwang sa bahay. Kami ay nag-aayos ng lambat, nagpoproseso ng isda, nagtitinda, nag-aalaga ng pamilya, at nakikibaka para sa pangisdaan at kabuhayan. Kung kikilalanin ang mangingisda, dapat kilalanin din ang kababaihang bumubuhay sa pangisdaan,” she added.
Call for Justice
Meanwhile, Pablo Rosales, president of Pangisda-Pilipinas, a KKAMPi member organization, maintained that “Congress must confront the painful contradiction faced by fishing communities.” “Mayaman ang ating karagatan, pero naghihirap ang mangingisda. Iyan ang malaking kabalintunaan at kawalang-katarungan na dapat nang wakasan. Hindi sapat ang ayuda kung araw-araw namang nanganganib ang aming kabuhayan, tirahan, at karapatan sa pangisdaan,” Rosales said.
NGOs for Fisheries Reform (NFR) led by Tambuyog Development Center also supported KKampi’s initiative.
Landmark Bills Filed in Congress
As this developed, Dinagat Islands Congressman Kaka Bag-ao, together with Albay 1st District Representative Krisel Lagman, and Akbayan Partylist Representatives Chel Diokno, Perci Cendaña, and Dadah Ismula, filed their landmark bills to support the country’s fisherfolks. The bills include Bantay-Dagat, Yaman-Lokal Act (House Bill 9043), Batas Alon or Security of Tenure for Fisherfolk and Fishworkers Act (House Bill No. 9044), and the Kasaganaan sa Baybayan Act (House Bill 9046).
“These are not just policy proposals, they are a call for social justice. The Constitution is clear: the State must protect the rights of subsistence fisherfolk. It is time we give full meaning to that mandate,” Diokno said in a separate report from state-run Philippine News Agency. The Akbayan Reform Bloc also urged fellow lawmakers in the 20th Congress to support the said landmark bills. (Ronald O. Reyes/SunStar Philippines)
