Egyptian fishing plan challenged

The controversy involves the Ras Mohammed National Park, a pillar of Egyptian marine protected areas and a key attraction for visiting divers. It was the country’s first national marine park, designated in 1983.

“South Sinai Governor Mohamed Abdel Fadeel Shousha is reported to have given the go ahead for fishing by hook and line during the month of June within the national park - the start of the spawning season for emperor fish,” the country’s Chamber of Diving and Watersports, which has opposed the move, said today.

“In response to recommendations by CDWS, the Minister of Tourism has approved an action plan to stop the illegal fishing while providing funds - more than 400,000 Egyptian pounds - for capacity building, training and poverty alleviation for the Bedouin fishermen and their families.

“In return, they will refrain from fishing in Ras Mohammed and the latest South Sinai Governorate Decree would be revoked.”

The move to allow fishing around Ras Mohammed had, said the CDWS, “sparked fury among the dive community, particularly as overfishing was cited as one of the factors that led to the unprecedented shark attacks in Sharm el Sheikh last year”.

Heavy fishing, said the CDWS, causes “extensive physical damage to reef habitats, marked effects upon the coral reef community structure, dramatic changes in food webs and disturbed predator-prey relationships”. 

The Hurghada Environmental Protection and Conservation Association (HEPCA) has described the decree to allow fishing as “not only illegal but ecologically and economically disastrous as well as being devastating to the sanctity of the rule of environmental regulations”.

“The decree must be revoked,” it said.

To add pressure on the Minister of Tourism to push through with his stated intention to rescind the fishing rights, an online petition has been created by the diving community at http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/stop-fishing-in-ras-mohammed-national-park/.

Should the link bring up the care2 petition site’s home page only, key ‘Ras Mohammed’ into the search engine box and click on the ‘care2 search’ activator.

As of today, the signatures total stands at 1520.