Fishing, a way of life and means of survival, faces renewed licensing debate

Some fish for leisure, some for relaxation, others for survival.

They sit on low sea walls with a rod and a bucket, wade across beds of turtle grass in the shallow coastal waters, spool out coloured reels or handline on a moonlit pier. The scenes are as old as Cayman.

But the right to fish along Cayman’s shoreline is now in question.

Fish stocks have declined and some anglers argue that different nationalities have brought less sustainable approaches, threatening both the resource and the right for Caymanians to enjoy a traditional national pastime.

For others, particularly low-wage workers, fishing is more than just a pastime. It is a means to put food on the table.

Against that backdrop, a licensing regime has been proposed that would require work permit holders to obtain a licence to fish.

Cayman Compass recently took to the streets and the coastline in Grand Cayman to find out what people think about the proposal.

‘Every time you go fishing, it gives you hope’

Gregory Simms, a Jamaican tour bus driver who was fishing on the shore near Lobster Pot, said that for him, fishing is about freedom.

“I don’t think a licence is needed at this time, and I hope they just keep it free for the people. Let us enjoy nature,” he said.

“Fishing is a good way to pass the time. It is a lot better than some of the other options out there and, for me, it is helpful. It centres my mind.”

He added that even though there are a lot of good things about Cayman, due to the high cost of living, life can be hard.

“Every time you go fishing, it gives you hope. You never know what you are going to catch,” he said.

Many of the people we spoke to did not want to give their name. We came across people of many different nationalities on the shoreline fishing – people from Nepal, Jamaica, the Philippines and several Caymanians.

“I just like to come out and free my mind. I am a working man, and I just want to take some time to fish and relax,” said a man, fishing from a dock near Morgan’s Harbour in West Bay, who gave his name only as Blue.

‘This is the only chance I have to get some meat to eat’

A Jamaican security guard named Alphonso Cameron practises handline fishing on the end of a South Sound dock.

“If I have to pay for a licence, I will probably have to go back home,” he said.

“To be honest, I am on minimum wage, and I am struggling to make ends meet. I work 18 hours a day to survive in Cayman and I only go home to sleep.”

He added, “If I catch a fish under 8 inches, I put it back. I don’t drink or go to the bar; fishing is my relaxation on my one day off, and this is the only chance I have to get some meat to eat for the rest of the week.”

‘Licence for expats would protect fish stocks’

Anthony Welcome, who owns an air-conditioning company called Cool Comfort, was also fishing on the same dock in South Sound.

When asked whether expatriate workers should be required to get a fishing licence, he said, “I believe a licence would be good. That would be a positive thing, because it would help protect the fish stocks.”

He added, “If government charged 10 or 20 dollars for a licence for permit holders, then that money could be used to help pay for schools and things like that.”

Anthony Parry, who owns the Mr Kool ice cream trucks, had taken a two-hour break from work and had stopped off at the old Mariner’s Cove site in Spotts to cast a line in the water.

“I just love fishing and being around the sea,” he said.

“The water and the natural environment, it makes me feel happy, but the problem is the small fish need to go back in the water and not everyone is abiding by the rules.”

Currently, the law states that fish under 8 inches in length should be returned to the water.

“I think there needs to be more education about releasing the small fish, and if that happens, I don’t really think the licence thing is necessary,” he said.

‘We need to protect our way of life’

Robert Jackson, who was fishing near the public dock in East End, was strongly in favour of licensing foreigners who want to catch fish.

“Make them get licences,” he said. “I remember when there were a lot more fish and you could catch a fish anywhere from shore.”

He added, “We need to protect our fish stocks and our traditional way of life and, in Cayman, the deep water is very close to shore, so the shelf is narrow and the stocks are limited. If you don’t have licences for foreign nationals and it isn’t managed properly, then the fish will be depleted, and that is happening already,” he said.

Jerry McLaughlin of East End said, “It is well known that people from other countries are eating all kinds of things that we as Caymanians wouldn’t even eat.

“They take every fish they catch, no matter how big, and they are even taking the bleeding teeth shells and the very sea beef [also known as chitons].”

He added, “It is time to put a stop to it. … One thing I know for sure, I can’t go to another person’s country and take and eat up all their resources. We need to protect what is ours.”

East Ender Billie McLaughlin has an even stronger opinion. He wants to see a complete prohibition on foreigners catching fish.

“The only way they should be allowed to fish is if they pay a Caymanian charter boat captain or a local fishing guide to take them out on the water, and even then, if they catch something, all the fish [that aren’t released] belong to the captain of the boat,” McLaughlin said.

Policy discussion

In October last year, government backbencher McKeeva Bush filed a successful private member’s motion, seeking a formalised licensing framework for fishing, specifically for work permit workers.

“For years. we have been concerned [with] the wide, open way in which we see people fishing, giving no regard to size and species. It’s time this wanton disregard stops. This is an effort to curtail it,” Bush said.

Attempts to push ahead with the policy could run into legal challenges, given Cayman’s Constitution and Bill of Rights.

In 2007, an amendment to the Marine Conservation Act required non-Caymanians to hold a licence from the Marine Conservation Board at a cost of $400 per year or $150 per month in order to fish.

In a 2010 court case, in which four people were accused of fishing without a licence, then Chief Magistrate Margaret Ramsay-Hale, now Cayman’s chief justice, said the law was discriminatory and unconstitutional and the matter was dropped before it went to trial.

The provision was later repealed with the passing of the National Conservation Act in 2013.

During the debate on the motion in October, the Compass reached out to the Department of Environment about the current status of fishing licences. The department confirmed there are currently no fishing licence requirements nor fees for anyone, whether resident or visitor.

However, according to John Bothwell, manager of the legislation, implementation and coordination unit at the Department of Environment, the department and ministry did develop an issues paper for a licensing regime that was submitted to Cabinet for consideration. Cabinet feedback and direction was taken, updates were discussed and submitted to the ministry, but the matter did not make it back to Cabinet.

“It is important to note that significant parts of the ideas contained in the draft proposal relied upon other agencies for effective implementation,” Bothwell said.

“Anything relating to a licensing regime or system will, of course, first require discussion and consideration by the next government.”

The Department of Environment said it is considering a range of options, but it has previously stated that enforcing a fishing licence only for expatriates would be a hard and potentially costly proposition.

The department’s deputy director, Tim Austin, said at the time, “There are solutions, but it comes down to money and enforcement … and it is very, very difficult to determine who is a Caymanian.”

As a possible solution, Austin suggested that Caymanians should be issued with a free licence for fishing.