A large number of fisher and peasant women hailing from different coastal villages and inland waters of Badin district on Saturday participated in a rally marking the week of action to celebrate the World Food Day. The rally was organised by the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF).
PFF chairperson Mohammed Ali Shah, manager programmes Jamil Junejo, Maria Soomro, Mithan Mallah, Omar Mallah, Sajan Mallah and others led the rally. The community women and youth carrying banners and placards were shouting slogans to promote family farming and fishing to save their sources of income.
Majority of the participants belonged to traditional small scale fishermen, farmers and herder families, who are facing threats to their lives and source of income. PFF chairperson Mohammed Ali Shah said Badin being located at the mouth of disaster might be wiped out from the earth, because of ignorance of the government authorities. He said the district – once home to scenic lakes, wetlands and natural waterways – was turning in to barren lands and brackish lakes with no attraction for the birds and wildlife species.
“We want to ask the government to realize the fact and give the people back their sovereignty of food and natural resources. Sea is eroding hundreds of acres of fertile land, pushing people to migrate from one place to the other in search for better living,” Shah said, while speaking to the crowd.
He said the community people should themselves see how the fish catch was declining in the sea and lakes around them.
Community leader Mithan Mallah said trend of migration among the communities was increasing because of depleting natural resources and unending sea intrusion. He asked the government authorities to see the plights of the people first before designing policies to avoid uncertainty.
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