The Department of Agriculture (DA), represented by the Office of the Solicitor General, filed a motion with the Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that grants commercial fishing vessels access to municipal waters.
The DA called on the Supreme Court to reconsider its decision, emphasizing the need to protect small-scale fishers and preserve marine ecosystems to ensure the sustainability of fisheries and coastal communities.
Under the Fisheries Code, municipal waters are reserved for small-scale fishers.
DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. revealed the move during a meeting with groups such as the Federation of Free Farmers (FFF), Oceana Philippines, Magsasaka Partylist, the National Anti-Poverty Commission and the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice to address the ruling’s implications.
Drawing on his extensive experience in the fishing industry, Tiu Laurel warned of the decision’s potential to harm small fishers and marine ecosystems.
“At depths of 7 fathoms, or 12 meters, corals are at risk, and our already scarce marine resources could face further depletion,” he said.
The Supreme Court’s First Division earlier upheld a Malabon Regional Trial Court ruling that declared the Fisheries Code’s preferential access provisions unconstitutional, following a petition by Mercidar Fishing Corp.
Oceana Philippines vice president Gloria Estenzo-Ramos cautioned that allowing commercial fishing in nearly 90 percent of coastal waters could devastate marine resources and render tracking systems like the Vessel Monitoring System ineffective.
“This opens the door to increased illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing,” she said.
The DA cited initiatives supporting small fishers, including solar-powered ice plants, fish processing facilities and sustainable fishing practices like standardizing net sizes to prevent overfishing.
