The Government is letting people know that the whole country would suffer if a fishing agreement was used in a political campaign to hurt Seychelles.

In the weekly Tete-a-Tete radio programme on Sunday and Monday (October 19-20), Vice-President James Michel was asked to comment on an address opposition politician Jean Francois Ferrari made before the European Parliament and in which the Seychelles National Party leader urged the body to refuse us any money and to use the fishing agreement to hit us “where it hurts the most”. VP Michel said “we were shocked to hear such news” and warned that “almost the entire country would suffer” if the fishing agreement encountered difficulties as wished by Mr Ferrari.

Fishing, led by the tuna industry, is maintaining its position as a major contributor to economic development in terms of production, trade and foreign currency generation. It has attracted foreign fleets and a multinational company to Port Victoria. And news that a 20-strong delegation from Spain is due in the country this week to mark the 20th anniversary of the first fishing agreement signed between Seychelles and Spain reminds us of the importance of that sector.

In Seychelles over 2000 households earn their livelihood from fishing activities.

When he addressed the European Parliament in June Mr Ferrari used the human rights issue as the pretext to ask Europe to “hit them where it hurts the most”. In other words, Mr Ferrari continued, you should refuse them any money when they request from you. Mr Ferrari rightly mentioned in his address that Seychelles was a small country, that it had a fishing agreement with the European Union that “is very important to them”. But unbelievably the SNP man also appealed to the European Parliament to “please, when it comes to renegotiate these agreements, let them know you will not be tolerant of their actions. It will hurt them …”   

This is a real cause for concern for our people, mainly those who earn their living from tuna transshipment, fish processing at Indian Ocean Tuna (IOT) and employment as sailors aboard the purse seiners. At first few believed that one of our own Seychellois would travel overseas and ask foreign countries to hurt our small islands. Then, in what appeared to be a follow-up to Mr Ferrari’s address, a letter from the Committee for Development and Cooperation of the European Parliament was sent to President Albert Rene linking the recent spate of crimes, including the death of a lady at Grand Anse, to human rights abuse. The President replied that it was unfair to come to conclusions whilst investigations were ongoing.

As the sinister plot, carefully designed by the opposition to tarnish the image of Seychelles overseas, continues to unfold, the Government here has decided to come out and let people know of the dangers to the national economy. 

In the Tete-a-Tete programme VP Michel noted that the fishing agreement signed between Seychelles and European Union allowed for European vessels to fish in our waters and in return we benefited from licence fees, direct contribution from the fleet owners and other revenues. Last year Seychelles earned some R27 million under this agreement. This is money earned in foreign exchange.

When pressed by the programme producer on the real threat the Ferrari statement represented to the national economy, the Vice-President added that Seychelles actually benefited a lot more from the foreign fishing fleet operations. Without the fishing agreement Seychelles would either earn little from the fishing resource or the foreign fleets would no longer operate in and out of Port Victoria.

“There would be no jobs for the dock workers who do the transshipment of tuna. There would be no tuna to supply the IOT factory and many Seychellois would lose their employment. There would be no export of canned tuna. All other activities connected to the fishing industry would suddenly cease. And when it’s gone, it’s gone,” said VP Michel.

“When it’s gone, it’s gone,” he repeated in the radio broadcast.

Ship chandlers, farmers and suppliers, men employed in net repairs, technicians and even SEPEC’s fuel re-export would be affected from the cancellation of the fishing agreement.

“Almost the entire country will suffer,” said VP Michel. 

Mr Ferrari did not inform people in Seychelles of his campaign to seek collective punishment for what he claimed were cases of human rights abuses as no details of his statement were published in his party’s publications.  The Government later got audio recordings and verbatim reports of Mr Ferrari’s address and the debate that followed on the “hit them where it hurts most” statement.

 With the help of foreign partners, Seychelles began developing industrial fishing in the 1980s and started reaping benefits from the industry after heavy investments. According to the Seychelles Fishing Authority (SFA) the fishing sector and ancillary activities account for approximately 14% of total formal employment. The tuna canning factory alone can employ 2,500 people. Other people are employed as crew on fishing vessels.

For the year 2002 a gross amount of R302 million was generated by industrial tuna fishing and related activities. This is the sector that would be severely affected if it encountered difficulties.

Central Bank figures reveal that gross inflow from fisheries and related activities would be about 48% higher than earnings from tourism, which registered an increase of 7.4% in 2002, to reach R827 million, and which accounted for about 26% of current Account receipts for the year.                

Work stoppage initiated by a group of tuna transhipment workers in January cost the country and the fishing industry a lot of money. Losses were estimated at US$3 million a month. Fishing vessels had to sail for other ports for unloading and some young men lost their jobs in Port Victoria. This is just a reminder that we have to safeguard the bread-winner fishing industry.

Honourable Barry Faure, Member of the National Assembly for Seychelles, addressed  the 6th Session of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, Rome, 11-15 October 2003, on the issue of the recent spate of crimes in Seychelles and the implications on human rights. He, too, said it was too early to draw conclusions on this spate of crimes which were still under police investigation.

“We are open to receiving a fact-finding mission from the European Parliament, the Commission and even this ACP-EU Joint Assembly, as we have nothing to hide,” he told the meeting.

Mr Faure said the National Assembly was also taking up the issue of crimes and human rights in Seychelles and would look at the circumstances which led to Mr Ferrari asking the European Union to hit Seychelles “where it hurts the most”. It is an urgent matter for the National Assembly’s international affairs committee, added Mr Faure.

VP Michel said now that Seychelles had just completed major investments for our future and the future of our children and needed all the foreign exchange it could get to pay the debts, for travel, medicine and import of goods, this was not the time to bring more problems onto our country.

“It is for this reason that I use every occasion I get to speak about patriotism, of love for our country and to ask that we put Seychelles first,” said the Vice-President.

Mr Faure also mentioned that the “hit them where it hurts the most” statement was now a public issue as it referred to the fishing industry. Seychelles’ image and reputation overseas were also at stake.

“There is a need for the government to take a pro-active stance on this matter to safeguard our development and reputation,” said Mr Faure.

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