PORT ELIZABETH, South Africa (24 Dec 2005) -- A BIZARRE incident at Schoenmakerskop yesterday has highlighted again the seriousness of the perlemoen poaching plague. A Port Elizabeth resident who did not want to be named for fear of reprisals said he stood on the bluff opposite the Sacramento Restaurant yesterday morning watching a group of perlemoen poachers. The poachers were in scuba gear going about their business and so close to shore their faces were clearly visible, he said. Just then a busload of tourists pulled up next to him and the tour operator started to talk on the bus microphone to his passengers. "He described a few of the local attractions including the Sacramento Trail on our right. "Then without a pause he drew their attention to the group in the water who he identified quite rightly as poachers. Everybody had a good look, and then they drove off. "These guys are so pervasive and so blatant they have become a tourist attraction. Yet our authorities cannot put a stop to them. It's crazy." The incident follows on the controversial disbanding of the perlemoen poaching task team last month – and a call by the DA two weeks ago for Environment Minister Martinus van Schalkwyk to "get creative" about fighting the scourge. DA national fisheries spokesman Gareth Morgan said the government's reduction of the total allowable perlemoen catch for 2005/06 to 223 tons "is a signal that the fishery is in crisis. "The minister seems to believe four new marine vessels will be sufficient deterrence. While they may help, he needs a comprehensive land- based assault." The response should be localised, he said. | | "Many current initiatives with reasonable levels of effectiveness are based in the Western Cape, while the Eastern Cape is being largely neglected." Morgan said he had written to the minister to focus on the Eastern Cape, and four areas of action in particular. Marine and Coastal Management officials must be paid overtime for weekend and night work, he said. "Most officials are hamstrung because they cannot work during the peak poaching times." Morgan also called for the establishment of an honorary rangers unit and said diving bans should be imposed at poaching hotspots. SOURCE - The Herald Online |
