Fishermen in Spain are protesting proposed EU cuts that would reduce fishing days in the Mediterranean, arguing that the plan could destroy the industry, harm the economy, and cost 17,000 jobs.
Fishermen in Spain began a two-day strike on Monday to protest proposed European cuts that would largely restrict the number of days they can fish in the Mediterranean.
Thousands gathered on Monday in front of the European Commission headquarters in Madrid to demonstrate against the planned cuts.
The proposed changes would reduce the number of days trawlers can spend at sea from 130 days per year to just 27.
One protester said, “This is the death that has been foretold. If the people who make the laws decide tomorrow that we only get 27 days, the fishing industry will be finished.”
The European Union wants to decrease the number of fishing days for Mediterranean trawlers by 79% in an effort to improve fish stocks and protect biodiversity.
Protesters argue that these cuts would badly harm Spain’s economy and damage the fishing industry. They also believe the EU’s plan is based on flawed data and does not take local fishermen’s concerns into account.
“We will try to extend the strike to Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, whatever it takes. Because really, 27 days. Many ships won’t even be able to start working,” said another protester.
Frustrated and desperate, Spain’s fishermen’s unions say they have faced too many restrictive regulations. They’ve already dealt with the European Court of Justice’s suspension of the fishing agreement in Moroccan waters, and now they face Brussels’ new plan to limit trawling in the Mediterranean.
Brussels defends the trawling cuts as part of the Multiannual Fisheries Plan for the Western Mediterranean, which came into effect in January 2020. The plan aims to achieve sustainable fish stocks by 2025 by reducing the fishing pressure on coastal species.
Fishermen call proposed cuts ‘death penalty’
Meanwhile, the main representatives of Spanish fishermen, PECA ESPAÑA, have released a manifesto condemning the EU plan, calling it a “death sentence” that could result in the loss of around 17,000 jobs.
PECA ESPAÑA also warned that around 556 trawling vessels operating along the affected coastline would disappear due to the measure.
Javier Garat, president of the Spanish Fishing Confederation and Europêche, the main fishing union in the European Union, urged the new EU fisheries commissioner, Costas Kadis, to halt the plan “immediately.”
“The fishermen have been completely ignored,” Garat told local media.
The Spanish government, along with France and Italy, has opposed the proposed cuts. “Spain will not accept any outcome that harms the interests of our fishermen,” said Spain’s Agricultural Minister, Luis Planas, upon arriving in Brussels on Monday, where the Council of Ministers began discussions on the issue.
Video editor • Jerry Fisayo-Bambi
