‘ATON ANG KINSE’: Ilonggos Walk 40KM to Defend Municipal Waters

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

More than 40 kilometers. A 12-hour walk. A plea to protect a livelihood.

Before dawn on Saturday, June 28, Carlito Moncal, a fisherfolk from Miagao, Iloilo, began a long, weary walk not just powered by footsteps, but by a cause—protecting their threatened livelihood from commercial fishing encroachment.

Moncal was among dozens of fisherfolk and advocates who joined the over 40-kilometer “Walking the Talk: Aton ang Kinse” solidarity walk from Miagao to Iloilo City.

The walk aimed to defend the 15-kilometer municipal waters from the entry of commercial fishing vessels.

Moncal said commercial fishers use advanced technologies that drastically reduce fish catch for small fishers, affecting their income and food security.

“Mabudlayan na kami magdakop kay mas dalagko ang ila suga kag gamit. Sinsilyo na lang ang mabilin sa amon,” he said.

(We will struggle to catch fish because their lights and equipment are much bigger. Only scraps will be left for us.)

“Amo ang pinakasakit nga scenario kung magsulod ang dalagko nga commercial fishing sa amon area,” he added.

(That’s the most painful scenario if large-scale commercial fishing enters our area.)

Moncal lamented the lack of government support for fisherfolk compared to farmers.

“Medyo napabayaan kami sang gobyerno,” he said.

(The government has almost forgotten us.)

“Sa kada tuig, compare sa mga farmers, may mga subsidy sila nga ginabaton. Kami nga mga fisherfolk, wala kami ginahatagan,” he added.

(Every year, farmers receive subsidies. We fisherfolk haven’t been given anything.)

He said the walk was exhausting, but the cause gave them strength.

The walk was organized by the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) and Too Big To Ignore (TBTI) Philippines. It drew over 150 participants, including students, fisherfolk, advocates and local officials.

They started at 1 a.m. from UPV Miagao campus and passed through Guimbal, Tigbauan and Oton before reaching UPV Iloilo City campus by noon.

The protest followed a December 2024 Supreme Court ruling declaring unconstitutional the preferential access of municipal fisherfolk to the 15-kilometer boundary.

The ruling allows commercial fishing within municipal waters previously reserved for small-scale fishers.

It upheld a lower court decision striking down the ban on commercial fishing in municipal waters and invalidated Section 16 of the Fisheries Code.

That section gave local governments jurisdiction over municipal waters.
UPV Chancellor Clement Camposano, who led the walk, said the ruling highlighted the marginalization of small-scale fisherfolk.

“I feel that as the national university, it’s our duty to call attention to that,” he said.
“We feel very strongly that we should articulate that issue the best way we could.”
He emphasized that small fishers are among the most vulnerable to climate change despite contributing the least to it.

“They’re being pushed into the water’s edge. You push them to the edge, and you also get their livelihood,” he said.

Camposano argued the decision was based more on legal technicalities than substantive justice.

“I hope we don’t reach a point where somebody will say they took justice and hid it behind the law, rather than the law serves the ends of justice,” he added.

TBTI Philippines Executive Director Alice Ferrer said the issue is a national concern.

“We have to raise awareness of what the issue is,” she said.

“Others are asking, ‘Ano ang Aton Ang Kinse?’ This is not just a responsibility of a few, but of everyone,” she added.

Ferrer said the solidarity walk achieved its goal of raising awareness.

The Iloilo provincial government also filed a petition with the Supreme Court to intervene and support a motion for reconsideration.

Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr., with backing from the Sangguniang Panlalawigan through Resolution 2025-062, is pushing for the reversal of the ruling.

The province, along with coastal municipalities and civil society groups, argues that the decision weakens LGU authority, endangers livelihoods and threatens marine biodiversity.

They called the ruling a “clear social injustice” and a blow to local government autonomy.