The death of a sailor and silence of politicians - EDITORIAL

Last week one of Sri Lanka’s navy personnel was killed as a result of ‘aggressive manoeuvers of an Indian trawler, resisting seizure for illegally poaching in Lankan waters. The Indian vessel was however taken into custody and together with the fishermen manning the vessel were handed over to the police for prosecution. 

These Indian fisherfolk seem to believe they have a right to enter our waters, and do what they please, even to the extent of damaging boats and equipment of local fishermen. Last week events escalated to a point where a Lankan navy personnel lost his life in one such confrontation.

Daily Mirror correspondent Kurulu Kariyakarawana reporting on the incident said when the naval craft approached the foreign fishing boat from its tail, and the sailor was about to board the latter, the Indian trawler manoeuvered forcing the heavy iron bar of the trawling crane to crush the victim’s chest.
Since January this year the SL Navy had seized 28 Indian trawlers engaged in illegal fish harvesting in Sri Lankan waters and 214 Indian fishermen.

In a surprising turn of events, MK Stalin Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister (not to be mixed up with our very own trade union leader Joseph Stalin) has written to the Indian Foreign Secretary to immediately seek the release of the Indian fishermen held in Sri Lanka. 
Tut, tut, Stalin Sri Lanka is a separate country with its own borders and boundaries.

The issue gets more and more curious, with India’s Foreign Secretary informing the CM that the Indian Embassy in Colombo and its Consulate in the North were doing their best toward this end. 
Not a word about the Indian fisherfolk breaking the law. No word to Stalin himself to take action and ensure Tamil Nadu fishermen do not break international laws governing maritime boundaries.

One dreads to think of what could happen if the proposed land bridge between India and Lanka were to become a reality. Will ordinary Indian people from Tamil Nadu believe they have a right to move into this country and set up business establishments ignoring immigration, emigration, financial regulations and customs laws of our country?
Strangely, our political establishment, has been extremely silent over the killing of the Lankan sailor and the challenges posed by the incident. Only MP Douglas Devananda graced the funeral of the victim navy officer. Not so long ago we witnessed droves of politicians visiting the funerals of military personnel who fell victim to the LTTE. 

According to Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera, Commander of the Lankan Navy, typically, Indian fishermen, operating within their waters, are permitted to fish on Saturdays, Mondays, and Wednesdays. However, deep sea craft face no such restrictions. 

However, instead of going into the high seas these vessels come to Sri Lankan waters and poach here. The area around Delft Island and the shallow seas off Point Pedro are rich in crabs and prawns. Most days around 600 Indian vessels poach in our waters. 

Rather than going out into the deep sea, these craft enter Sri Lankan waters. The problem therefore, is to make the Indian fishermen and their political backers in Tamil Nadu understand that international maritime boundaries need to be respected. India often bristles if even by accident a small section of that country is shown as belonging to China or any other land. 

So what ails the Indian Central Government? Why can it not help its southernmost state understand its fishermen cannot intrude into the boundaries of much smaller countries? 
It is not that the Lankan navy cannot use force to bring under control Indian vessels resorting to ‘aggressive manoeuvering. It is purely for the sake of maintaining good relations with our giant neighbour the navy has desisted from using its firepower to bring under control these large fleets of vessels that poach in our waters with impunity.

India has, over a long period helped our country in its hour of need. Indian help in extending a line of credit when the country was facing bankruptcy is a classic case in point. But it is really time the Indian Central Government brought to heel its southernmost state to prevent events from getting out of control.