EU ministers of fisheries meeting in the German port of Büsum found that the backdrop to their session was a protest by hundreds of German shrimp fishermen looking to vent their frustrations at proposals to end demersal fishing.
Several hundred fishermen tied up their shrimp boats in Büsum, and a police presence in the town was mounted to maintain order as the protesters made clear their opinion of the proposed measures they claim will wreck their livelihoods in these are introduced – as proposed – before 2030.
‘I have been fishing since 1992. If the proposal from the EU goes through, I will nothing left. There’s simply nobody who would want to take over my boat. It will be unsellable and that means that I would have to sell my house, like so many other fishermen in the area,’ fisherman Andreas Pruski told local media.
Fishermen have gathered in Büsum from all along the coast of north-western Germany to protest in Büsum, concerned that the consequences of a demersal shut-down would close the shrimp fishery, with serious implications for the region as a whole – not least with the effects on tourism.
‘They [tourists] come especially to buy freshly caught shrimp. If that goes, the tourists will also disappear,’ fisherman Ralf Krippner warned.
Maik Jannsen said that long before NGOs took an interest in fishing, the industry had been protesting against the dumping of industrial waste in the river Weser.
‘We also want to improve and become more sustainable. But this proposal from the EU Commission is simply not rational. We risk closing fishing down completely,’ he said.
