‘ATIN ANG KINSE’: Makabayan Bloc pushes exclusive fishing rights bill

By Juliane Judilla

The Makabayan Bloc filed House Bill 5606 on Oct. 20, aiming to grant exclusive rights to municipal and small-scale fisherfolk over the 15-kilometer municipal waters.

Known as the Atin ang Kinse Kilometro Bill, the measure seeks to protect the livelihoods of subsistence fishers by barring commercial fishing vessels from municipal waters.

The bill was filed in response to a recent Supreme Court decision that declared as unconstitutional the provision in the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998 (Republic Act 8550) that gave municipal fisherfolk preferential access to municipal waters.

HB 5606 asserts that the state has a constitutional duty under Section 7, Article XIII of the 1987 Constitution to protect subsistence fishers and guarantee their preferential rights to marine and fishing resources.

The bill was developed in coordination with Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (PAMALAKAYA), a militant fisherfolk alliance that joined the Makabayan Bloc in a protest outside the House of Representatives during the filing.

“This is a response to the Court’s order to fully open the municipal waters to commercial fishing vessels,” said PAMALAKAYA National Chairperson Fernando Hicap.

“It strengthens the rights of small-scale fishers in the municipal waters, which large fishing corporations are trying to seize.”

According to PAMALAKAYA, commercial fishing in municipal waters is already prevalent and contributes to the degradation of marine ecosystems and worsening poverty among small fisherfolk.

“Even before the full implementation of the Court’s order, large-scale commercial fishing operations are already widespread in our fishing grounds,” Hicap added.

“This is causing further losses for small-scale fishers and the rapid depletion of fish and other marine resources.”

PAMALAKAYA said it will launch a nationwide campaign to advocate for the bill, including organizing protest actions, holding grassroots consultations, and lobbying legislators.

“Along with the filing of the bill, we will continue to campaign persistently in Congress to heed the call of the fishers for exclusive rights to their fishing grounds,” said Hicap.