Jaffna fishermen hold protest opposing Indian trawling

2 Sri Lankans were killed ‘in a clash’ with Indian fishermen

Scores of northern Sri Lankan fishermen on Thursday took to the streets, blaming Indian fishermen for the recent death of two Jaffna fishermen “in a clash” at sea. The agitating fishermen protested the continuing use of the bottom trawling fishing method by Indian fishermen, “ravaging” their seas.

Long-festering tensions between fishermen in Sri Lanka’s Northern Province and Tamil Nadu have escalated in recent weeks, following two clashes mid-sea on January 27 and 29, when Indian trawlers reportedly rammed into smaller Sri Lankan fishing boats.

Days later, the bodies of two fishermen from Jaffna peninsula were recovered, according to Annalingam Annarasa, who leads the Federation of Jaffna District Fishermen’s Cooperative Society Unions.