MAP News, 214th Edition, 1 of 2, June 3, 2009
The MAP News, 214th Ed., 3 June 2009

Dear Friends,

This is the 214th Edition of the Mangrove Action Project News. Please help us
keep our readers informed by sending us any updates and news items related to
mangrove forest issues!


For the Mangroves,

Alfredo Quarto
Mangrove Action Project


Sign up to receive the MAP News by sending an e-mail
to:
mapnews@....


MAP's Mission:
Partnering with mangrove forest communities, grassroots NGOs, researchers and
local governments to conserve and restore mangrove forests and related coastal
ecosystems, while promoting community-based, sustainable management of coastal
resources.


All news items and notices published in the MAP News can also be accessed
directly from our home page www.mangroveactionproject.org, with links to the
full story and the original source. New items are posted daily and are available
as an RSS feed!


Visit the MAP News Archive:
http://www.mangroveactionproject.org/news/the-map-news/the-map-news-archive


DONATE TO MAP
MAP depends on your support in order to produce this e-bulletin and all that we
do. Please visit our website and consider donating to MAP today. It is easy to
give a one-time donation, or to set up monthly recurring donations via PayPal or
Network for Good!
http://www.mangroveactionproject.org/donate


Contents for MAP NEWS, 214th Edition, 3 June 2009:

FEATURES STORIES
Worldwide Protest Against WWF's Plans to Launch Aquaculture Stewardship Council

MAP WORKS
Join the Mangrove Action Project at the 2009 Fremont Fair
Submit artwork now for 9th MAP Children's Mangrove Art Calendar
Visit us at the Shrimp Less Blog
ANNOUNCEMENT: "Mangrove Forest Ecology, Management and Restoration" training
workshop, March 3-5, 2010, Hollywood, Florida, USA.

AFRICA
African Declaration Against Unsustainable Industrial Shrimp Aquaculture in
Nigeria

NIGERIA
A Writer's Violent End, and His Activist Legacy

SE ASIA
BURMA
After `Nargis', mangrove restoration lacks vision
Will the Mangrove Forests be Rebuilt?

INDONESIA
Saving the 'Coral Triangle'
Fishermen, coastal residents sidelined at ocean conference
Mangrove forest needs better care
Indonesia's Mangrove Ecosystem Needs All the Attention It Can Get

SOUTH ASIA
BANGLADESH
Shrimp Lose Shine in Bangladesh
New Developments
Aila toll leaps to 121

====
FEATURE STORIES

14 May 2009

Worldwide Protest Against WWF's Plans to Launch Aquaculture Stewardship Council

Over 70 human rights and environmental groups from around the world have today
expressed outrage at the planned launch of the World Wildlife Fund's Aquaculture
Stewardship Council.

In a letter sent today to leading members of WWF, campaigners claim that the
organization's plans to certify the industrial production of shrimp and salmon
are influenced by the vested interests of the aquaculture industry, and do not
reflect or take into account the wishes of local communities and indigenous
peoples who live alongside shrimp and salmon farms. They say that WWF continues
to reject invitations to meet with representatives of affected communities in
six different aquaculture regions across the world.

Campaigners also argue that the planned certification process is inherently
flawed in favor of the aquaculture industry. They point to the fact that the
certification body run by WWF is part-funded by the food industry, and that the
individual employed by WWF to run the process, was previously employed as a
regional vice-president for a controversial aquaculture multinational, that has
been widely accused of labor violations and environmental destruction.

"WWF needs to explain why they are happy to engage with industry, but have
repeatedly rejected calls for meetings from over 70 groups, representing tens of
thousands of marginalized people from around the world?" asks Juan Jose Lopez,
Coordinator of Red Manglar in Latin America.

"How can any process be regarded as legitimate when a large Western Ngo and it's
financial backers in the food industry are able to dictate what is best for the
livelihoods of people in other countries around the world?" asks Alfredo Quarto,
of Mangrove Action Project.

"The proposed certification by WWF promises to legitimize environmentally and
socially damaging forms of aquaculture in the name of cheap prawns and salmon.
It's high time that WWF stops 'Pandering' to the interests of big business, and
instead begins to listen to the voices of real people that rely on the oceans
and forests to survive." says Natasha Ahmad, ASIA secretariat.

Regional Contacts:

Asia: Natasha Ahmad: Asia Solidarity Against Industrial Aquaculture (ASIA),
secretariat@... 00913322840767
Latin America: Juan Jose Lopez of Red Manglar (Latin American Mangrove Network),
Colombia redmanglar@...
Africa: Abdoulaye Diamé of the African Mangrove Network, Senegal
abdoulayediame@...
UK: Jim Wickens of Forest Peoples Program jim@... +44 7736070379
USA Alfredo Quarto of Mangrove Action Network, mangroveap@.... Tel.
(360) 452-5844

Notes to Editor:

The rapid rise in global demand for cheap shrimp and farmed salmon has caused
extensive degradation of mangrove wetlands and other coastal ecosystems and
subsequent losses in biodiversity. These losses have also destroyed livelihoods
among local communities and indigenous peoples in many nations across the global
South.

Shrimp: At a time when shrimp is the most popular seafood in the U.S., and
growing in popularity in Europe and Japan, most consumers don't realize the
extensive problems their appetite for shrimp engenders. 90% of shrimp consumed
in the U.S. are imported from countries where mangrove ecosystems have been
recently cleared to establish vast stretches of shrimp ponds dug into once
productive wetland soils. This causes serious declines in biodiversity and
related wild fisheries, shoreline erosion, increased susceptibility to
hurricanes and tsunamis, and releases massive quantities of carbon, which had
previously been safely stored beneath mangrove roots, thus contributing to
climate change. There are also many health issues raised by eating farmed shrimp
grown in chemical soups of antibiotics, pesticides and other contaminants. For
more information log onto
http://www.mangroveactionproject.org/issues/shrimp-farming/shrimp-farming.

Salmon: Similar issues pervade the fin-fish aquaculture industries. Salmon
farming is one such industry leading to massive escapes of non-native Atlantic
salmon into Pacific Ocean waters, while endangering native Pacific salmon and
other marine life because of disease and parasite outbreaks, pollution and
overuse/misuse of antibiotics potentially causing dangerous pathogens to develop
antibiotic resistance. http://www.puresalmon.org/fact_sheets.html

Feed: salmon and shrimp are carnivores, and for every kilo of the product on the
supermarket shelf, several kilos of wild caught fish and frequently GMO-sourced
soya, are used to feed the farmed salmon and shrimp. The sheer amount of food
needed to feed shrimp and salmon on an industrial scale is destroying ecosystems
and livelihoods on land and at sea in Latin America, where much of these
feedstuffs are sourced from. See:
http://www.theecologist.org/pages/ecologist_media.asp?podcast_id=105

Certification: Scientific research carried out in Indonesia to assess the
effectiveness of certification schemes on farmed shrimp in the region, found a
catalogue of systemic problems associated with certification, and concluded
that, "these systems may never fulfill any of their overarching objectives such
as long term sustainability or reduced consumption of non-certified shrimps"
http://www.naturskyddsforeningen.se/upload/Foreningsdokument/Rapporter/rap-inter\
-shrimp-naturland.pdf




Submit artwork now for 9th MAP Children's Mangrove Art Calendar

A fun and exciting Art Contest for children 6 to 14 years old

We invite all primary school children from tropical and sub-tropical nations,
and whose schools are located near mangroves, to create art telling us "why
mangroves are important to me and my community".

Selected winners will be published in a 2010 calendar to be distributed
internationally to raise awareness of mangrove forest ecology. This creative
contest aims to promote appreciation and awareness of mangrove forests, and to
encourage and listen to creative voices of children living in mangrove areas.

Help us launch this program in your school by contacting science and art
teachers in your area and encourage them to work together on this fun and
innovative project.

**********************************

What kind of art can be submitted?

Technique: Paint, color pencil, ink, collage, pastel, crayons, etc

Dimensions: Canvas, or paper, 45 cms x 30 cms. (18 in. x 12 in)
The Art Work should be in a format horizontal (long length across, the shorter
length vertical), in order to fit on the calendar page. (We had received
wonderful art work in a vertical format, but sadly were unable to use it. )

Artist Identification: On the back of each art work please write in English: the
full name and age of the artist, the school name, address, city or town,
country, and title of art work.

Age Limit: 6-13 years old

Mailing instructions: The art work has to be mailed in a small tube, such as the
ones for mailing posters. Make sure the art is sent in certified or registered
mail to MAP, PO Box 1854, Port Angeles, WA 98362-0279, USA.

How will entries be judged?

Each school will hold its own exhibition and select 3 or more winners in art.
Winning entries will be collected in each country by a participating NGO and
then mailed to MAP's office to be judged by a team of artists.

What are the prizes?
- 1st Prize will receive a certificate + calendar and the recognition of being
published in an International calendar with global distribution.
- 2nd Prize will receive a certificate + calendar and the recognition of being
published in an International calendar with global distribution.
- 3rd Prize will receive a certificate + calendar and the recognition of being
published in an International calendar with global distribution.

School will receive 2 Calendars
NGOs will receive10 Calendars.

When is the deadline?

Please, we must receive the artwork in MAP's office by the end of 31 July, 2009.

Mailed to: PO Box 1854,.Port Angeles, WA 98362-0279, USA
Please mail in a tube or flat in a box, but not folded!

Who do I contact?

Please let us know if your school plans to participate by contacting:
Monica Gutierrez-Quarto,
Calendar Project Coordinator
c/o Mangrove Action Project

PO Box 1854
Port Angeles, WA 98362-0279, USA

tel./ fax (360) 452-5866
e-mail: monicagquarto@... and
mangroveap@...

All entries selected at the national level should be submitted to the same
address.

Your local NGO contact is: (Please fill this in.)


Some suggested Field Trip and Classroom Lessons

It is suggested that this contest could coincide with an Associated Mangrove
Ecology Educational Project with the children. This lesson will highlight the
importance of mangrove forests for the environment, for their community, for
fishermen and/or for the associated mangrove forest fauna. The intent of this
educational project is to help the participating children better comprehend the
important role mangroves play in their lives and for their communities.

1 - Information and guidance in the classroom, aided by text books, mangrove
curriculum, slides and videos.

2 - Eco-Study Field trips for firsthand observation with the teacher and/ or a
local resource person, where they can observe the myriad forms of life that
inhabit the mangroves, such as the many colored birds, fish, crabs, mollusks,
reptiles, mammals, and insects, while also learning about the unique
characteristics of the associated mangrove plants and trees.

3- During, or after, the field trips, the children can hold interviews with
their parents or local fishermen about the mangroves in their region, learning
more about the history of the area's mangrove forest, as well as why they are
important and what the problems are when the mangroves are lost.

4 - As a result of this research, the children may wish to create artwork for
the 2010 calendar art competition.


AFRICA

African Declaration Against Unsustainable Industrial Shrimp Aquaculture in
Nigeria

The NGOs/CBOs in the African continent, in addition to supporting the African
Mangrove Network Communique on shrimp aquaculture in Arica, is in solidarity
with Nigeria and the Mangrove Forest Conservation Society of Nigeria led Nigeria
Industrial Shrimp Aquaculture Working Group during the second African Mangrove
Network Conference held in Accra, Ghana from 27th-30th April 2009. Collectively
declared as follows:-

1) That the several attempts and on-going plans to have industrial shrimp
farms in Nigeria without an Environmental Impact Assessment Study/Guidelines is
absolutely wrong as it is not in line with local, national, and international
conventions, therefore it should be discontinued.

2) The Nigeria government, FAO, UNDP, UNEP and other international
organizations should therefore work together work together to put in place a
workable all stakeholders guidelines that would regulate sustainable shrimp
aquaculture in the country.

3) We therefore condemn all unsustainable industrial shrimp aquaculture
activities by foreign investors and their local collaborators and hereby support
the activities of the Mangrove Forest Conservation Society of Nigeria le working
group to alert the world and trigger environmental friendly sustainable actions
with a view to bringing positive changes that would protect the physical and
human environment.

4) In this regard, we call on the Federal Government of Nigeria to
convene an all stakeholders consultation forum and to implement the FAO
guidelines on shrimp aquaculture, UNEP and UNDP guidelines on the protection of
environment and World Bank guidelines on conservation of Mangroves without
further delay so as to protect the Nigerian mangrove ecosystem for the present
and future generation.

Signed:



NIGERIA

5 May 2009
by Patricia Cohen

A Writer's Violent End, and His Activist Legacy

"I had a surprising call this week," the author Richard North Patterson told the
audience that had gathered last weekend as part of the PEN World Voices Festival
of International Literature. It was former President Bill Clinton. Mr.
Patterson's new novel, "Eclipse," is based on the case of the Nigerian writer
and activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, and Mr. Clinton spoke of a phone call he had made 14
years ago to Gen. Sani Abacha of Nigeria, asking him to spare Mr. Saro-Wiwa from
the hangman.

Mr. Clinton said General Abacha "was very polite," but "he was cold," Mr.
Patterson related. "Clinton took away from that, among other things, that oil
and the need for oil on behalf of the West and other places made Abacha, in his
mind, impervious."

The event's moderator, the Nigerian novelist Okey Ndibe, added an unexpected
epilogue. A friend in the Abacha cabinet said the general later boasted: "All
these pro-democracy activists run to America and expect America to save them.
But the U.S. president himself is calling me 'sir.' He is scared of me."

Mr. Saro-Wiwa, a popular author who helped create a peaceful mass movement on
behalf of the Ogoni people, was executed in November 1995 along with eight other
environmental and human rights activists on what many contended were trumped-up
murder charges. His body was burned with acid and thrown in an unmarked grave.

PEN, an international association of writers dedicated to defending free
expression, along with Guernica, the online literary magazine, sponsored the
panel with Mr. Patterson, Mr. Ndibe and Ken Wiwa, Mr. Saro-Wiwa's son, to
discuss Mr. Saro-Wiwa's literary and political legacy.

Fourteen years have passed. General Abacha has died, and Mr. Saro-Wiwa has had a
proper burial, but the circumstances surrounding the nine executions, along with
related incidents of brutal attacks and torture, are getting another hearing.
This month the Wiwa family's lawsuit against Royal Dutch Shell over its role in
those events goes to trial in federal court in Manhattan.

"We feel that Shell's fingerprints are all over," Ken Wiwa told the audience.
"Clearly Shell financed and provided logistical support."

Among the accusations are that Shell employees were present when two witnesses
were offered bribes to testify against Mr. Saro-Wiwa, said Jennie Green, a
senior lawyer at the nonprofit Center for Constitutional Rights, which is
representing the family. She said Mr. Saro-Wiwa's brother Owens has also stated
that Shell's managing director, Brian Anderson (now retired), told him, "If you
call off the campaign, maybe we can do something for your brother."

Under American law you don't have to be the one who "tightened the noose" to be
found guilty, Ms. Green said.

In a statement Shell said: "Shell in no way encouraged or advocated any act of
violence against them or their fellow Ogonis. We believe that the evidence will
show clearly that Shell was not responsible for these tragic events." The
company added, "Shell attempted to persuade that government to grant clemency."

Mr. Wiwa, 40, said his father was an ebullient, ambitious man with a wicked
sense of humor. "All other things being equal, he probably would have been a
comedian or an actor, but he was compelled to write," he said.

At the start of the panel two performers read a short excerpt from Mr.
Saro-Wiwa's play "The Transistor Radio," one of many he wrote for Nigerian radio
and television that satirized the country's numbing poverty and rampant
corruption. "Why were you fired?" one man asks another. He responds, "For
getting the job."

Mr. Wiwa, who published a memoir in 2001, "In the Shadow of a Saint: A Son's
Journey to Understand His Father's Legacy" (Steerforth), said: "My father was a
great man. I grew up with this man, the myth and the memory always in front of
me."

He added, "The struggle to define yourself against your father gives you a sense
initially of something to write about," as did the political situation he found
himself thrust into.

Mr. Wiwa is now writing a novel, but he has also felt compelled to carry on his
father's environmental and human rights work. He serves as a special assistant
in the government but warns that the ecological and human devastation in the
Niger delta, one of the world's largest wetlands, is worse than ever.

Thousands of miles of oil pipelines run through coastland occupied by the Ogoni
people, one of 250 ethnic tribes in Nigeria. Noxious fumes, spills and
development have turned much of the area into a wasteland, causing severe
deforestation as well as desperate poverty.

Going off on his own and writing, untroubled by politics, has "been a dream for
30 years," said Mr. Wiwa, who is Ogoni, like his father. But he added, "A lot of
my most profound thoughts originate from being involved in this struggle. It
compels you to consider the idea of what happens if you just go away and write.
Because you may not have anything to say."

Mr. Ndibe asked about sacrifices his family made because of his father's
commitment, but Mr. Wiwa demurred.

"All of us have a choice, to make our children safe in the world or to make the
world safe for our children, and there are implications to that," Mr. Wiwa said,
referring to others he has met who share his situation, like Nelson Mandela's
daughter Zindzi and Nkosinathi Biko, the son of the South African activist Steve
Biko. "Our fathers chose a different path."

Mr. Patterson was on the board of PEN 15 years ago when the organization lobbied
on Mr. Saro-Wiwa's behalf. Before the panel began, he explained how he came to
write "Eclipse." Since 9/11 the United States has become even more dependent on
Nigerian oil, Mr. Patterson said. "I thought it was time to put Saro-Wiwa in the
context of today's politics of oil: how we are all implicated in the lives of
people we don't even know."

During his imprisonment Mr. Saro-Wiwa said that he often envied Western writers
"who can peacefully practice their craft." Yet he also recognized that wasn't
his path. As he wrote in 1993, "The writer cannot be a mere storyteller, he
cannot be a mere teacher; he cannot merely X-ray society's weaknesses, its ills,
its perils, he or she must be actively involved shaping its present and its
future."

Source: The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/05/books/05wiwa.html?_r=1&8bu&emc=bu


S.E. ASIA
BURMA

28 May 2009
by Maria Osbeck and Neil Powell

After `Nargis', mangrove restoration lacks vision

The horrors of Cyclone Nargis a year ago, and the Asian tsunami before that,
have led to renewed interest in how mangroves can limit the impacts of natural
disasters.

As news images of devastated landscapes and bloated corpses appeared in the days
and weeks after Nargis, environmental campaigners made their point: if Myanmar's
3,000-km coastline had kept its original fringe of mangroves, the damage would
have been less. Perhaps, some of those who died - up to 140,000 people, by some
counts - could have been saved.

Today most governments acknowledge the importance of mangroves in dissipating
the force of storms, and tides and waves caused by extreme events like Nargis.
Mangroves serve as natural nurseries and feeding grounds for three-quarters of
all commercially fished species in the tropics. Their unique root systems
capture sediment and prevent erosion. They also filter out pollutants that would
otherwise flow into the sea.

Mangrove restoration is more popular than ever before. Following Cyclone Nargis,
Dr Surin Pitsuwan, Secretary-General of ASEAN, emphasised the role of mangroves
in mitigating the impact of natural disasters. Before that, in the wake of the
Asian tsunami Bill Clinton hosted a meeting in New York to launch "Mangroves for
the Future", a multi-party project focusing on mangrove conservation in
tsunami-affected countries. The Red Cross is funding major replantation efforts
in Vietnam and Thailand, and Japanese government aid is supporting mangrove
plantations across Asia.

However, many attempts at mangrove restoration are deeply flawed.

Mangroves are being planted in areas that never supported mangroves in the first
place. In Thailand, for example, the government has been very supportive of
mangrove restoration, but re-planting efforts often do not consider local
ecosystems. Mangrove forests are part of a larger coastal ecosystem that
typically includes mudflats, sea grass meadows, tidal marshes and salt pans.
They may be linked with inland forests, peat lands, and freshwater rivers and
streams. Approaches to mangrove restoration need to consider how new trees will
affect existing ecosystems, and whether suitable sites are selected.

In Thailand mangroves have been planted on coastal mudflats, resulting in loss
of habitat and feeding grounds for migratory birds, shellfish and other shore
life - leading to conflicts with local fishermen who depend on the mudflats for
their livelihood. Experience from the Philippines shows that the survival rate
of mangroves planted in unsuitable terrain like this is very low. In Sri Lanka,
it has been shown that extensive planting of mangroves in lagoon areas has led
to an overall reduction in fish productivity.

Then there are issues of land rights and livelihoods linked to the restoration
of mangroves, where the brackish water supports shrimp farming. Unclear land
right systems and zoning of coastal areas are major challenges to the
effectiveness of mangrove restoration in the long term.

The Mahakam delta in East Kalimantan has become one of the wealthiest areas of
Indonesia due to local shrimp aquaculture, as well as gas exploration in areas
formerly covered by mangrove.

Here, shrimp pond owners grow "organic" white-spot shrimp in large-scale,
low-intensity systems with few chemical inputs - a practice that allows them to
command higher market prices as compared with shrimp from high-intensive,
smaller pond cultivation that is common elsewhere in Asia. This land-hungry
enterprise has led to the loss of almost 80 per cent of the mangroves in the
delta, despite the fact that most of the area is officially classified as a
conservation zone.

Companies drilling for natural gas in the Mahakam delta are paying compensation
to farmers for the loss of mangroves due to gas exploration. While only a small
amount of mangrove loss is traced directly to gas exploration, the knock-on
effects are far-reaching. Local people who have customary rights to stands of
mangrove are now clearing new areas in the hope of being able to get money for
the exercise. Others are holding on to old shrimp ponds that have become
unproductive, rather than converting the land to other uses, in the hope of also
being able to claim compensation. The lack of transparency and ambiguities in
this process has led to conflicts between farmers and companies, in addition to
losses of natural assets.

It is important to acknowledge current land use practices in designing mangrove
restoration plans, in order to reduce conflicts between user groups, and to
support law enforcement to limit further conversion and ensure long term
sustainability of replanted areas.

The revival of interest in mangroves following the devastation of Nargis, should
now be harnessed in designing and implementing programmes that contribute to
sustainable coastal resource management. Such solutions must consider the
livelihoods of local people, as well as incentives for them to maintain existing
natural assets. Mangroves have many uses, and many people benefit from them. It
would be a great pity if the current enthusiasm for mangroves should falter, due
to a failure to reconcile conflicting aims.

Mangrove restoration should contribute to the ecosystem and local communities -
and not merely to impressive statistics on how many trees have been planted.

Source: The Jakarta Post
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/05/13/after-nargis039-mangrove-restorati\
on-lacks-vision.html


6 May 2009
by Kyi Wai

Will the Mangrove Forests be Rebuilt?

BOGALAY, Irrawaddy Delta _ Before Cyclone Nargis struck Burma's Irrawaddy delta,
the island known as Mein Ma Hla (in Burmese "pretty woman") was beautiful, the
home of dense mangrove forests and bamboo.

Now, the island remains badly scarred, the mangrove forests devastated, and
large fallen trees still testify to the cyclone's wrath.

Cyclone Nargis destroyed 16,800 hectares of mangrove forest (about 30 percent)
and 20,999 hectares of forest plantations in Rangoon and the Irrawaddy delta,
according to the Post-Nargis Joint Assessment (PONJA) report.

At one time, mangrove forests formed impenetrable areas along the delta
coastline. Large kanazo and beau trees towered toward the sky. One local
resident recalled it was like living in a big tree house.

Traditionally, local villagers cut down trees on Pretty Woman Island and nearby
Kyun Nyo Gyi for firewood and charcoal.

But more rapid changes started in 1990s, when investors began to develop the
area into prawn farms. Vast stretches of mangrove forests were cleared for the
farms, which reaped investors big profits.

Fortunately, much of Pretty Woman Island itself was protected by law and escaped
deforestation and prawn farm development, while continuing to provide local
resources to residents and offer shelter for numerous animals including
crocodiles, monkeys, samburs, birds, squirrels and fish.

The one Hundred Monkeys Pagoda and other religious sites located in the area
also gave many residents a feeling of sacredness and tradition, say local
residents.

A forest ranger on the island recalled, "In the past, villagers who came into
the forest didn't bring along meat to eat. To pay respect the spirits, they even
spoke politely. They chopped a few trees for their own use, not a lot, and
maintained a tradition which paid respect to the spirits." According to a local
belief, a greedy tree-cutter who didn't honor the spirits would be eaten by a
crocodile.

While Cyclone Nargis destroyed most of the villages along the costal area and
killed nearly 140,000 people, residents on Pretty Woman escaped unharmed.

"That night, me and my wife were illegally cutting trees on the island," said a
man from Lama village. "Those big trees in the mangrove forest saved our lives.
Not only us, all the villagers who were on the island that night escaped from
the storm."

Most of the bigger trees were broken or toppled down. Smaller trees and bushes
survived.

"The bushes were there even after the cyclone," said a resident of Padaekaw
village. "But many dead bodies from the villages were floating in the water and
were caught up in the bushes. After about a week, the army burned the dead
bodies. They used a flame-thrower. That's why many trees and bushes are also
burned."

Following the cyclone, many crocodiles, monkeys, samburs and squirrels were
killed or have since left the area.

"The crocs are moving," said a resident of Sitsalong village. "After Nargis, the
crocs got a chance to eat dead bodies. They are now human-eating crocs.
Recently, a man in our village was attacked and eaten by a croc while he was
setting his fishing net. And a child from Ngethu village was taken by a croc.
That time, the little boy was sitting on the back of a boat. The croc first hit
the boy with its tail, then the boy fell into the water and the croc took him
away. The villagers in this area are now very afraid of croc attacks."

A forest ranger estimated that there were about 1,000 crocodiles on Pretty Woman
Island and in the nearby area. A crocodile farm was located on the island, and
the animals were protected by law.

Conservationists have warned that deforestation plays a key role in climate
change, and Burma has lost large portions of forests in the delta and throughout
the country since 1990, largely due to timber cutting.

The mangrove forest in the delta at one time served as a natural barrier against
storms. Environmentalists had warmed of the consequences of deforestation and
the loss of animal habitat, but their pleas largely went unheeded.

An environmental conservationist in Rangoon said, "When the cyclone hit,
thousand of people lost their life. It's a direct consequence of the
deforestation of mangroves. Prawn farms should not be allowed in those areas.
The government should consider the interest of local people and the habitat."

Initial plans call for 750 hectares of mangrove forest to be replanted in
Irrawaddy Division over a five-year period, according to an officer with the
Forest Resource Environment Development and Conservation Association.

Additionally, UN Development Programme plans to replant 30,000 coconut and palm
trees in five townships of the Irrawaddy delta, but that represents only a small
portion of the trees destroyed.

Many aid organizations and other groups are working to replant the mangrove
forests, Following Nargis the attitude of local people toward the forest has
changed.

"Before Nargis, I was selling firewood in Bogalay," said a villager from Lamu.
"When the cyclone hit, I was on Pretty Woman. The trees saved my life. The other
thing is that some people from rescue organizations talked about the importance
of the mangrove forests. I don't want to cut the trees for a living anymore. I
changed my mind. Instead, I am going to work as a fisherman."

He said villagers have also reassessed the role of prawn farms in the area

"In our village, prawn farms were everywhere. We had no place to hide. If we had
mangrove forests, most people would have survived. Many of us are now ready to
help replant the mangrove forests"

Lamu village, where the man lives, was home to about 700 people before Cyclone
Nargis. About 100 survived.

Source: Irrawaddy News Magazine
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=15593


INDONESIA

18 May 2009
by Peter Gelling

Saving the 'Coral Triangle'

JAKARTA, Indonesia - With the Indonesian government leading the way, six
countries signed a landmark agreement over the weekend to conserve one of the
most important marine communities in the world.

The Coral Triangle contains three-quarters of all known coral species on Earth
but is under attack from over-fishing, destructive fishing techniques, pollution
and climate change.

Moreover, 120 million people depend on the triangle's bounty for their
livelihoods, accounting for almost $2.5 billion in income every year. The Coral
Triangle is roughly half the size of the United States and is now the subject of
the largest marine conservation effort in history.

"The Coral Triangle is the highest expression of marine life in the world - 500
species of coral and thousands of species of reef fish," said Scott Atkinson,
regional manager for the Coral Triangle Initiative for Conservation
International, a non-government organization. "The agreement is totally
unprecedented, there has been nothing like this ever in terms of marine
conservation."

The Coral Triangle itself, which spans Indonesia, the Philippines, Papua New
Guinea, Solomon Islands and East Timor, is somewhat unassuming to the untrained
eye. To look at it from the Indonesian city of Manado in North Sulawesi is
nothing special. And most people who live here have never heard of it.

But it is home to some of the world's oldest species, and for marine biologists
it is the ultimate destination. Yet, like all the world's reefs, it is
disappearing at a breakneck pace. Fisherman decimate the coral using dynamite,
cyanide and other poisons, and in the process they are unwittingly destroying
their own sources of income.

For millions of people in Indonesia alone, the massive reef provides their only
source of income, through coastal and small-scale fisheries - an income that is
meager to begin with. A report released during the World Ocean Conference last
week showed that if the destruction of the reef was allowed to continue,
widespread poverty would be one of the tragic results.

Fortunately, Indonesia's president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has demonstrated
an active interest in conservation since taking office several years ago. He
organized the first-ever World Ocean Conference, which was held last week and
which culminated in the signing of the Coral Triangle Initiative. Representative
from around the world were in attendance.

It is the second time in as many years that Indonesia has held a major
international conference to address environmental issues such as conservation
and climate change. To everyone's surprise, Indonesia offered to host the United
Nations Conference on Climate Change last year. While Indonesia still lags far
behind other countries when it comes to protection of the environment, its
leaders' willingness to engage and encourage dialogue seems to indicate a shift
in attitude. Indonesia has taken a number of steps in recent years to improve
its environmental record.

"There has been a great deal of initiative on the part of Indonesia," Atkinson
said. "I have been extremely impressed with what has been accomplished so far
and a lot of credit has to be given to Indonesia, as well as the countries who
have signed on and pledged resources of their own."

For Indonesia, the Coral Triangle Initiative could be its most ambitious
environmental effort yet.

"In 30 years of conservation work, I have never seen anything like this: six
leaders signing a commitment to protect their marine resources for the
well-being of their citizens and future generations," said Conservation
International's Chairman Peter Seligmann. "We extend our deepest congratulations
as they embark on this unprecedented global initiative to secure human
livelihoods and adapt to climate change through the conservation of their
individual and shared marine heritage."

Still, the signing of the agreement is only the first step. As the world learned
after the signing of the Kyoto Protocol to reduce carbon dioxide emissions,
action is the hard part. Despite being more than a decade old, the Kyoto
Protocol has not yet led to reduced worldwide emissions.

But the Coral Triangle Initiative has received unprecedented support - including
$40 million from the United States alone - and has struck a balance between
development and conservation that analysts said might just be the key to making
it work.

"People here have always been aware of the value of their resources and the need
to protect them, but the development imperative has made it difficult. But the
Coral Triangle Initiative is a really good model and I think we really can
achieve a great deal," Atkinson said.

Source: The Global Post
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/indonesia/090518/saving-the-coral-triangle


14 May 2009
by Christiane Oelrich

Fishermen, coastal residents sidelined at ocean conference

Manado, Indonesia - At the first-ever World Ocean Conference held on Indonesia's
Sulawesi island this week, the devastating effects of climate change on the seas
are the focus of international attention.

The survival of millions of costal residents is at stake - they are endangered
by rising sea levels, increasing salinity of the oceans and decimated fish
stocks.

Scientists, politicians and environmentalists paint a dire picture. But one
group is conspicuously absent at the gathering of 5,000 experts from 80 nations
- the world's coastal dwellers, islanders and fishermen - the groups affected
most by the maritime changes.

Odd - as the people whose future is most at stake live right at the conference
venue's doorstep. Manado has more than 600,000 inhabitants, all of them living
on the coast, many of them fishermen.

Two activists were arrested Monday when they, together with 200 fishermen, tried
to get the conference participant's attention. More than one dozen participants
from the Philippines were deported.

'This event is organized for government officials only,' said conference
chairman Eddy Pratomo, Indonesia's ambassador to Germany. 'We want a common
understanding between ministers, and in due course we want to invite also people
affected by climate change.'

The opinions of fishermen and costal dwellers do not sit well with the
Indonesian government's view.

'Fisherfolks are punished in the name of conservation, but the problems are
caused by others,' Berry Nahdian Furqon, head of the Walhi environmental forum,
told the German Press Agency dpa shortly before he was arrested.

He referred to an extension of maritime safety zones where fishing is banned.
The fishermen are usually the last ones to be informed about those changes, he
said.

Indonesia, with broad international support, is pushing this extension towards
10 million hectares by 2010.

'Now it seems to be only about quantity, not quality of conservation,' said Riza
Damanik of KIARA, an advocacy group for the rights of small-scale fisherfolk.

'If you talk about climate change you cannot be silent on pollution that is
released in the sea by mining companies for example, or about oil and gas
exploration, or sedimentation from cutting the forests or overfishing,' Damanik
said.

Also, the problem of unregulated fishing by often foreign fishing fleets has to
be stopped, he says. According to him, Indonesia is losing 20 to 50 per cent of
its annual catch that way.

Such topics are too hot for the Indonesian government. Reining in mining
companies could endanger tax gains and investment. If law enforcement goes after
illegal fishing fleets too rigorously some high-level politicians who are
involved in commercial fishing could be caught in the net.

Fisheries Minister Freddy Numberi talked about the fate of poor coastal dwellers
affected by rising sea levels. Indonesian scientists fear that about 2,000 of
the archipelago nation's 17,000 islands could be lost 20 years from now.

But at the conference, his main drive goes into a different direction. 'Oceans
should be given credit for their role in absorbing carbon dioxide, similar to
forests,' he said. 'Indonesian oceans can absorb 25 million tons of CO2 every
year.'

It's all about money. Rich countries should pay for island nations like
Indonesia to look after those valuable CO2 sinks, according to experts at the
conference.

In their draft of the Manado Declaration, Indonesia's delegation included a
passage seeking to ask UN bodies to 'consider including the provision of funding
for integrated coastal and ocean management in the context of climate change,' a
phrasing which was vetoed by many industrialized countries.

Source: Monsters and Critics
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/features/article_1477068.php/\
Fishermen_coastal_residents_sidelined_at_ocean_conference__Feature__#ixzz0FVQWKk\
Rb&B


5 May 2009
by Desy Nurhayati

Mangrove forest needs better care

Piles of garbage seem to be a common sight around the Angke Kapuk protected
mangrove forest in the North Jakarta coastal area, despite the efforts of
several environmentally friendly groups.

These groups, which include NGOs and private companies, hope to conserve the
44.76-hectare forest through replanting, but are challenged by overgrowth and
pollution.

In some areas along the coastal forest, newly planted mangroves have been swept
away by floods or waves.

"This area was replanted in June last year by a group of high school students.
It was clean before a huge wave swept away the trees and brought the garbage
here," said Siti Bariyah, a guard in the area.

"They *the students* carried out the replanting well. They cleaned up the
rubbish before planting 200 seedlings here, and the trees grew nicely. It's a
shame the area is now full of rubbish again."

To protect the trees from being eroded by waves, there are bamboo fences
installed along the coastline, but the fences collapse whenever the waves
strike.

"We clean up this area often, but it takes time to remove the debris," Siti
said.
She said there used to be regular maintenance and replanting by the government,
but now it increasingly falls on private companies and other voluntary groups to
take care of the area.

"We hope there will be volunteers willing to tidy up this area soon," she said,
adding the students' parents had also promised to restore the area after they
managed to collect enough money.

Since last year, there have been several private companies jointly replanting
the area as part of their corporate social responsibility program, as denoted by
boards at the forest entrance.

Each company usually plants between hundreds and thousands of seedlings at once.

Saut, a forest ranger who lives in a nearby residential area, said the
companies' representatives occasionally visited the forest to monitor the area
they had planted.

"Some companies regularly distribute maintenance funds to the forestry agency,
but there are also some others that only plant and then leave without notice."

"As far as I know, the maintenance is still partly financed by the forestry
agency, although there are companies that regularly pay for it," said the
forester, who has been working in the area for around 20 years.

He said it took four to five years for a mangrove to reach maturity, and that
there should be routine upkeep to prevent weeds from overgrowing and blocking
the mangrove.

"We should weed the area at least once a month, or else the mangroves will be
strangled by the more vigorously growing weeds."

The protected forest stretches along nearly 5 kilometers from Muara Angke,
Pantai Indah Kapuk to Kamal, North Jakarta.

The forest is separated into two parts by the Cengkareng Drain River.

The east part of the river comprises 16.26 hectares of forest along 2.1
kilometers, while the west part encompasses 28.5 hectares along 2.2 kilometers.

There are three monitoring towers and three guard posts, as well as three
containers to collect garbage, according to the forestry agency's official
website.

To get to the forest, people can pass through the Pantai Indah Kapuk housing
complex and go about 800 meters to the north from Pantai Indah Kapuk Hospital
located inside the complex.

The forest can also be reached via a 10-minute boat trip from Marina Beach in
Ancol recreational park to the Cengkareng Drain pier.

Although there are still several polluted spots, the efforts to conserve the
coastal mangrove forest have significantly improved, according to Nyoto Santoso,
executive director of the Institute of Mangrove Research and Development.

"I think the conditions have greatly improved. There are many replanting
campaigns every year, and thus there is less land available for replanting.

"Since the replanting is already sufficient, we should now focus on preserving
the trees."

He added conservation efforts taken by the forestry agency were now better than
in previous years.

"They did not even have a monitoring post back then, but now they have."

He said it would take a long time to revitalize the forest, including expanding
the area to 63 hectares.

"Currently, there have only been 3 or 4 hectares of expansion."

He recommended the construction of walls along the coast to break waves, as well
as nets to collect garbage brought by the waves.

To raise preservation awareness, some environmental organizations in the city
provide technical assistance for volunteers taking part in replanting the
mangrove forests, including the Jakarta Green Monster organization.

"We usually recommend the planters provide stocks of seedlings, as many as half
of the total seedlings they have planted, so that they can replant the seedlings
whenever the first planting fails," said Hendra Aquar, from the Jakarta Green
Monster.

"We also supply seedlings that can grow faster in order to be more efficient."

Ahmad Safrudin, from the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Forum for the
Environment (WALHI), said the growth of the mangrove forest in the coastal area
was further challenged by the short supply of brackish water, which is more
saline than plain water, but less saline than seawater.

"Mangrove can grow well if it receives an appropriate supply of salt water
combined with plain water."

"I noticed mangroves in several parts of the seashore have already been eroded,
and there has not been enough replanting there."

Nyoto suggested the area should be properly prepared before planting mangroves
by considering the factors that could hamper the growth, including the supply of
water, as well as the possibility it might be easily damaged by waves or floods.

"We should monitor the growth at least between six months and one year after we
plant it, depending on the rate of growth.

"After the plant matures, it will take less effort to preserve, except to remove
weeds."

Source: The Jakarta Post
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/05/05/mangrove-forest-needs-better-care.\
html


12 May 2009
by Sukristijono Sukardjo

Indonesia's Mangrove Ecosystem Needs All the Attention It Can Get

In the Indian Ocean region, Indonesia owns the biggest mangrove ecosystem. The
mangrove areas in Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Irian Jaya provide a primary
source of food for millions of coastal inhabitants, and they play a vital role
in maintaining ecological balance. Mangroves release large quantities of carbon
and nutrients to support aquatic food chains, as well as provide nursery
habitats for fish and shellfish species that are sold commercially. They also
stabilize shorelines, reduce soil erosion and buffer against extreme weather
conditions, thereby reducing the vulnerability of coastal communities and nearby
infrastructure.

But mangroves are under increasing threat from competing resource users,
particularly from tambak (brackish water fish pond) developers who have
conflicting goals and limited understanding of the functions of mangrove
ecosystems or their underlying potential. Almost two million hectares of
mangroves in Indonesia are reported to have been lost, or an astoundingly
alarming rate of 160,000 hectares per year. The most serious threat to the
country's mangrove ecosystem is believed to be the clearing of mangroves for the
development of artisanal ponds for fish and prawn culture. Other social and
environmental problems along coastal zones also contribute to the decimation of
the mangroves, as a result of extending shrimp ponds into mangrove areas or
forces brought about by inclement weather.

The problem of mangrove-area conversion is most serious in Sumatra, Kalimantan
and Sulawesi, and has been a long-standing issue in Java. In the Aceh and South
Sulawesi provinces, for instance, nearly 80 percent of the mangrove areas have
paved the way for land conversion. Java, Bali, Sulawesi have lost at least half
their mangrove forests in a little over 25 years. Along the Mahakam delta in
East Kalimantan, irresponsible land developers have cut off large mangrove
trees, while oil and other lethal chemicals from nearby oil fields have
contaminated the mangrove ecosystem and affected millions of species.

Today, Mahakam faces not only the sad reality of these brazen attacks on its
area, but also, ecologists say, a grim future that sees a barren, useless piece
of land.

The country has been enduring this type of ecological crisis for several years
now, but it is said that things will turn out worse this decade. I admit that I
am fighting to save only a small fraction of Indonesian Borneo's (or Kalimantan,
which make up 70 percent of the Borneo Island) original grandeur. Still, I hope
the awareness by those participating in the World Ocean Conference will address
the country's problem.

The mangrove ecosystem can't be allowed to die away and fall into exploitative
hands.

Mangrove forests have been systematically destroyed in the name of development.
It has been frequently reported that the conversion of mangrove areas to shrimps
ponds or tambak and other facilities represents the single largest threat to the
mangrove ecosystem in the country.

The government has imposed partial bans on logging, cracked down on illegal
loggers and raised timber royalties. History shows that this type of
environmental rape can have far-reaching consequences. The deforestation of
mangrove areas pose similar repercussions on the environment. It can lead to the
salination of agricultural lands, as in the case in Indramayu in the northern
coast of West Java. It can affect the amount of rainfall as well, because trees
trap moisture and then re-evaporate it. Sadly, despite the warning signs, nobody
seems to care.

The Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 is a prime example of how valuable mangroves
can be. Reports from Aceh in North Sumatra and Nias suggest that the coastal
communities protected by mangrove forests were damaged less compared to those
that had a depleted mangrove ecosystem.

The encroachment of industries into the country's mangroves is vividly
illustrated in the map of Metro Jakarta. Over 42 years until 2002, the Jakarta
coastal zone lost 1,102 hectares of mangrove forest, a deplorable loss given
that mangroves are a natural heritage in the country's capital.

Besides leaving a legacy to the city, mangroves in Jakarta serve a practical
purpose: they prevent floods. The water level along the highway to the
Soekarno-Hatta International Airport rises quickly not only because of
engineering problems, but also because of the depletion of mangrove areas along
the coast of Jakarta, particularly near the airport.

Campaigns to promote the importance of the mangrove ecosystem are not lacking,
with billboards and posters being put up in connection with the WOC. But even
though the government is aware of this environmental issue, it has failed to
transform concerns from the community level into an effective national program
that would save the country's mangrove ecosystem as a whole.

Conflict of interest among stakeholders, including nongovernment associations,
and concerns of who gets credit for what have hampered progress, as well as
other factors like population increase, pollution along coastal zones and in
aquatic habitats, epidemics and catastrophes.

With some 60 percent of Indonesia's total population living along the country's
coastlines, these areas have the highest concentration of people. The mangrove
ecosystem, as well as coral reef and seagrass, breeds animal and plant life that
provide basic resources to these communities. That means natural resources are
being used up faster and in turn, opens these communities to social conflict.

Mangrove ecosystems offer food sources, serving as habitats for aquatic species
that are being sold commercially and at the same time used by coastal
communities as their primary source of income. If the government recognizes the
potential that these ecosystems bring - both from the micro (employment
opportunities for local communities) and the macro standpoints - it will do its
best to maintain them. Which means the government wouldn't just rely on the
short-sighted vision of converting mangroves into tambak .

The commitment made in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 has its roots in the governing
council of the United Nations Environmental Program, and its declaration of the
need for concerted international action for effectively conserving the world's
biodiversity. Following this tact, new forms of international cooperation
reflect the country's growing awareness that the disappearing mangroves is not
only an issue of losing a national treasure but more importantly, an issue of
playing an important global role in maintaining ecological balance.

As a result of the commitment made during the Rio de Janeiro summit in 1992, the
world has a stake in conserving the country's mangrove forests. In other words,
this is a concern of everybody. Stakeholders need to sit down and take the
matter seriously; this ecosystem can't simply be allowed to die away and fall
into exploitative hands.

The future of life on this planet captured worldwide attention during the Earth
Summit in 1992 when 155 nations and states, including the European Union, signed
the Convention on Biological Diversity. Humanity has long deluded itself into
thinking that the mangrove shortage merely reflected problems of storms and sea
flooding. Indonesia is beginning to realize that mangroves are finite and
vulnerable resources, an irreplaceable commodity that must be respected and
preserved.

The Manado Ocean Declaration of the WOC should be strong enough to encourage an
international commitment on mangroves that would save the planet and its coastal
zones.

Source: The Jakarta Globe
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/opinion/article/19537.html


S. ASIA
BANGLADESH

by Pinaki Roy

Shrimp Lose Shine in Bangladesh

Soil salinity and falling global prices push farmers to agriculture

An increasing number of shrimp farmers in Bangladesh are going back to paddy
farming. They don't find the business lucrative anymore. Reason? "Shrimp farming
has rendered our village salineSEven groundwater has become too salty to drink,"
said Krishnapada Mandal.

His village Khalsi, in Khulna district, is adjacent to the Sunderbans-the
world's largest mangrove forest.

In the 1980s, when Bangladesh witnessed a boom in shrimp farming, Mandal
converted his about-an-acre paddy field into a shrimp pond. Then his village was
full of coconut, mango and banana groves. But over the two decades, they have
given way to mangroves. "Paddy farming has become impossible," he said.

Mandal has joined many farmers from the coastal districts of Khulna, Satkhira
and Bagerhat who are protesting against the hazards of saltwater-based shrimp
farming.

As per the proposed national shrimp policy drafted in 2008, about 217,000
hectares (ha) is under shrimp farming, of which 80 per cent is for saltwater
lobsters.

Between September and February, as upstream water flow drops in rivers, they
become prone to tidal flooding and get salty. Shrimp farmers open sluice gates
and allow the saline river water to flow into the canal. They irrigate their
fields with this saline water and cultivate shrimp.

Village residents say years of this practice has increased the soil's salinity
and reduced its fertility. Stagnant saline water in shrimp ponds often seeps
into the groundwater making it useless. "This has resulted in drinking water
crisis," said Mira Ray of Khalsi village. Dakop and Paikgachha sub-districts in
Khulna are the hardest hit. "Most people here now collect rainwater and preserve
them in large clay pots. Otherwise, we have to travel up to six kilometres to
fetch drinking water," said Ray.

There are other reasons as well. "Following the global economic meltdown, the
price of shrimp, mostly in demand from industrialized countries, has dropped
from US $5 in 2007 to US $3.7," said Gaurango Nandi, a journalist from Khulna
town. "This is a major reason for which shrimp cultivation suddenly became
unpopular in this region," Nandi said. When paddy was being sown in December,
farmers turned 12,000 ha of shrimp farms to paddy fields, said Dakop's
agriculture officer.

It was not so before:

Two decades ago, many farmers from the coastal districts had converted their
paddy fields into shrimp farms. Exports to the EU and the US made shrimp
Bangladesh's second biggest foreign currency earner. But soon influential people
monopolized the business. They forced small farmers to lease their land. A
number of farmers did this at will, but many were forced into the business when
big shrimp farm owners flooded their fields with saline water. Initially, it
yielded a good profit and was dubbed white gold. Following an outbreak of white
spot disease in 2000-2001, small farmers realized agriculture was a better
option. But most of them had leased their farmlands and getting it back was not
easy. This led to a tussle. Several police cases have been lodged against farm
owners and their musclemen for trying to open the sluice gates and flooding
paddy fields with saline water.

The issue also had a political impact. During the 2008 national election only
those politicians won who promised to fight saltwater aggression. Farmers now
demand the government take steps to ensure environment-friendly shrimp
cultivation to check further damage.

Source: Down to Earth magazine
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/full6.asp?foldername=20090531&filename=news&sec_id\
=4&sid=18


24 May 2009
by Natasha Ahmad, Asia Secretariat

New Developments

A lot of new 'developments' are taking place in Bangladesh. The government is
trying to introduce a new law that will help the industry. On the field side,
the communities affected by this 'rape and run' industry are coming together and
taking action. They are demanding rights to food sovereignty, livelihood and
access to land. On the brighter side, the affected local communities have
political support for their movement.

A few weeks ago I had posted links to newspaper clips (4 Bangla dailies have
published a series of articles on this issue. I had sent out links to the few
English articles on the topic) of reports on the shrimp issue from Khulna,
Bangladesh.

Just yesterday, a Bangla daily reported that the Bangladesh Government has
banned the export of shrimp for the next six months. The reason behind this ban
is excessive level of Nitrofuran in the shrimp. Nitrofuran is a banned class of
antibiotics and antimicrobials. The EU raised this issue and (I believe) also
threatened to stop the import of all kinds of shrimps, fish and crabs from
Bangladesh. The Government did not have any choice but to stop the export for
next six months. This is the power that the EU can wield if it chooses to!

The order has been sent to the BFFEA (Bangladesh Frozen Food Exporters
Association) and the ministry of Fisheries would inform the EU about action
taken.

>From this fiscal year (June 2008-July 2009), the Quality Control cell of the
Fisheries Department under the Ministry found very high level of Nitrofuran in
all 27 lots (the report did not mention the total amount in tons) of exported
lobsters. The level was 'too high' and was deemed 'hazardous'.

In another story published yesterday, shrimp workers reacted sharply to the
Labour Ministry's proposed minimum wage. The entire report is pasted below.


Shrimp plant workers, rights group reject Tk 2,510 as minimum wage
Staff Correspondent . Khulna, New Age 21/05/09:

Shrimp processing plant workers, rights group and economists have rejected Tk
2,510 as the monthly minimum wage fixed by the board on minimum wage for shrimp
industry workers and labourers.

The labour and employment ministry formed the six-member board through a gazette
notification on November 17, 2008.

The board at a meeting on Monday in its office in Dhaka set Tk 2,510 as the
minimum monthly wage for the workers, sources said.

The wage structure has seven grades with Tk 2,510 as the monthly salary for the
lowest grade and Tk 5,500 for the highest grade. Members on the
non-administrative staff have been divided into five grades where the fifth
grade staff will get Tk 2,510 and the first grade staff Tk 5,500 as monthly
salary.

Shrimp industry workers in Khulna said they needed at least Tk 7,500 a month to
run a family of four to five members and Tk 2510 was only a third of the amount
they needed.

They said the labourers in processing plants received between Tk 1,500 and Tk
4,500 a month, depending on their work experiences. Their condition will not
improve even if the proposed wage structure is implemented, they said.

A woman labourer the Jahanabad Sea Food Limited at Rupsha said she needed at
least Tk 7,000 a month to run her family of three.

'I earn Tk 2,600 a month and my husband, who works in another plant, also earns
Tk 2,800. Sometimes we need to work overtime to earn more and take help from our
relations,' she said. 'If the minimum wage is set at Tk 2,510, we will be in
trouble and we will need to stop sending our child to school to save Tk 1,200 a
month.'

The Khulna Shrimp Industry Labourer Interest Preservation Coordination Committee
convener, Firoz Ahmed, rejected Tk 2,510 as the monthly minimum wage. He
demanded that the amount should be Tk 7,500, including Tk 4500 in basic wage.

Khulna University economics teacher Shahnewaz Nazimuddin said Tk 2,510 as
monthly minimum wage for shrimp industry workers and labourers was not
acceptable in the present situation with spiralling goods prices.

Nazimuddin said the amount could not be accepted as the recent government pay
commission had recommended Tk 4,000 as the minimum wage for the lowest grade
employees in public sector.

A board member, S Humayun Kabir, also the managing director of the Amam Sea Food
Limited, told New Age the board at Monday's meeting set Tk 2,510 as the minimum
monthly wage for labourers working in shrimp industries and people having
objection to the amount could send in their complaints in writing to the board
in 14 days after the publication of the gazette.

He said on complaints, the board would sit again to decide the amount and if no
objection was received, the amount would be finalised as the minimum wage. He
said the gazette had been sent to the BG Press for printing.

Source: Asia Solidarity Against Industrial Aquaculture
http://www.asia-solidarity.org/


27 May 2009

Aila toll leaps to 121

The death toll from Cyclone Aila rose to 121 yesterday, as thousands of people
marooned in the coastal areas were battling to survive the aftermath with little
food and drinking water.

The storm that ripped through the south-western coast Monday has left at least
32 people killed in Satkhira, 25 in Noakhali, 20 in Khulna, 13 in Bhola, nine in
Barisal, seven in Patuakhali, six in Laxmipur, two each in Bagerhat and Cox's
Bazar, and one in Magura, according to reports from the affected areas.

Besides, two persons in Chapainawabganj and one each in Natore and Lalmonirhat
are among the Aila fatalities, news agency UNB adds.

The food and disaster management ministry however puts the body count at 91.

Our correspondents reported that tidal waves churned by strong winds have
inundated vast swathes of land.

Heavy rains coupled with gales flattened huge tracts of standing crops and
washed away numerous fisheries.

They also caused extensive damage to embankments and levees in the coastal
districts.
More than 800 people have been wounded and at least 58,450 domestic animals
killed, according to the disaster management ministry.

The government has deployed army and navy to help local administration and
non-government organisations in rescue and relief operations. Five navy ships
have been working to bring people stranded in offshore islands to safety.

Food Minister Abdur Razzak yesterday visited different cyclone-hit areas in
Bhola, Patuakhali, and Khulna. He distributed relief among the locals at
Panpatti village under Galachipa upazila in Patuakhali district.

Later, briefing reporters in the capital, he said water crisis seems to be the
main problem in the coastal areas. Some 278 water purification machines of the
army are in operation to deal with the shortage of safe drinking water.

Razzak said the cyclone has affected at least 30 lakh people.

Deputy commissioners, upazila nirbahi officers, upazila chairmen and
vice-chairmen are carrying out relief work in 14 districts.

The administration will distribute rice among the victims through VGF cards. It
has an adequate stock of rice at every upazila. Already 2,500 tonnes of rice and
Tk 1.23 crore in cash have been sent to the local administration for
distribution, he added.

The government will not seek aids from the international community as long as it
can tackle the situation on its own. "We will however consider if anyone offers
any relief or assistance."

Local officials said several lakh people were still stuck in remote chars. Many
took refuge on treetops and roofs of their submerged houses.

The Red Crescent Society in its report yesterday said over 33 lakh people in
eight districts were affected by the cyclone. Around 1 lakh were taken to safe
shelters under an evacuation campaign by volunteers and law enforcement
agencies, BSS adds.

Our Barisal correspondent reports: In Barisal division, Bhola appears to have
borne the worst of the cyclone.

Road and water communications between seven upazilas in the district have been
snapped for two days now.

Local sources said Aila has destroyed thousands of hectares of crops including
Aus, Aman and Boro rice, and vegetables.

Manpura flood control embankment has been breached at many points. Strong
current has carried away a 10-km stretch of the dam, and onrushing tide levelled
hundreds of homes.

People in the remote flood-affected areas were suffering from an acute shortage
of drinking water.

Our staff correspondent from Khulna reports: At 5:00pm yesterday, the death
count in the cyclonic storm stood at 22, according to official sources.

Of the dead, 20 were in Khulna district and the other two, women, in Bagerhat
district.

The storm and tidal surge have destroyed almost 80 percent of the forest camps
in Chandpai and Sharankhola ranges, said Mihir Kumar, divisional forest officer
in charge of the Sundarbans east wing.

According to Khulna district control room, Aila has left around 30,000 houses in
ruins. The number could be even higher once a full assessment is done.

Unofficial sources said over three lakh people in Khulna and Bagerhat districts
have remained marooned as of filing this report at 7:00pm.

At least 90 percent of shrimp enclosures and flood control dams in Khulna and
Bagerhat districts have been washed away.

Cargo handling at Mongla Port, which was suspended on Sunday night, resumed
yesterday morning.

Our correspondent from Satkhira said at least 32 people including children were
killed in Cyclone Aila. Shyamnagar and Assassuni upazilas were the worst
affected.

At least 90 percent of thatched houses and mud huts have been demolished by
Aila-fed tidal surge, forcing thousands of people to take shelter in nearby
buildings and cyclone centres.

Those in cyclone shelters were passing hard times for scarcity of food, drinking
water and medicines. The local administration was yet to launch any relief
efforts.

Meanwhile, fears of an outbreak of diarrhoea and other water-borne diseases were
growing.

Our Patuakhali correspondent reports: The number of people affected in Cyclone
Aila is over 11.50 lakh. Around 400 km flood control embankment and 75 km roads
of LGED have been damaged.

The district had at least 30,000 hectares of crops including Aus damaged in the
storm.

Our Gopalganj correspondent said hundreds of mud houses were knocked down and
trees uprooted during the cyclone on Monday.

The affected areas had been without electricity for over 24 hours. Land phone
connections and mobile network were yet to start functioning.

According to government figures, 352 unions and 62 upazilas in 14
districts-Barisal, Bhola, Pirojpur, Patuakhali, Barguna, Jhalakathi, Khulna,
Bagerhat, Satkhira, Chittagong, Cox's Bazar, Laxmipur, Feni and Noakhali-have
been affected.

Crops on 68,385 acres of land have been damaged completely and those on 2,39,212
acres partially. A total of 42,038 houses have been flattened and 1,98,823
damaged. Of the roads in the 14 districts, 258.5 km have been too battered to be
used.

Besides, 509 km embankments have been wrecked and 2,155 km damaged.

EXAMS POSTPONED

The HSC and equivalent examinations scheduled for the next two days have been
postponed in nine upazilas-Ashashuni and Shamnagar of Satkhira, Koira,
Paikgacha, Botiaghata, Dumuria and Dakop of Khulna, and Mongla and Rampal of
Bagerhat district.

Jessore Board Controller Amirul Islam told The Daily Star that dates for these
examinations would be announced later.

Source: Bangladesh News
http://www.bangladeshnews.com.bd/2009/05/27/aila-toll-leaps-to-121/


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]