HYDERABAD: The Pal(istan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) has called for an end to the occupation of freshwater bodies by influential feudal lords and condemned the latest such incident in Sujawal district in which a feudal lord had reportedly occupied Kun Parou Lake in connivance with police.

PFF chairperson Mohammad Ali Shah and office-bearers Mustafa Mirani and Noor Mohammad told a press conference at the press club on Wednesday that there were 1,209 freshwater bodies in the province but most of them were under occupation of influential`persons.Lately, he said, a feudal lord had occupied Kun Parou Lake in Sujawal district in connivance with police who were implicating poor fishermen in false cases to force them to leave their centuries-old abodes and profession.

He said the police and the feudal lord had created an atmosphere of fear and turned the area around the lake into a virtual no-go area for fishermen, although there were four old villages with large population. The occupation had rendered fishermen unable to earn livelihood for the past six months and forced their families to starve, he said.

He said the fishermen were given lease of the lake in 1951, which was renewed from 1963 onwards annually. After abolition ofcontractual system, they were issued licences by the Sindh government, he said.

Mr Shah said the PFF had taken up the issue with the Sindh government but in vain. Interestingly, when the forum approached Sindh fisheries minister and raisedtheissue,herepliedthatthelakefell within the land of that feudal lord, therefore, the fishermen had no right over it, he said.

He said that occupation of lakes was a violation of human rights and demanded the government end occupation of Kun Parou Lake. He feared if the situation remained unchanged then the waderas would eventually occupy all freshwater bodies in Sindh.

It appeared the government had no inter-est in safeguarding rights of fishermen, he said, adding the PFF would launch a peaceful protest campaign against the occupation of the lake.

He recalled that PFF had succeeded in getting contractual system abolished after 10years ofpeacefulstruggle.In2011,Sindh Assembly amended the Sindh Fisheries Act, 1980, to do away with contract system for fishing in freshwater bodies and introduce license system, he said.

But, Mr Shah said, soon afterwards influential feudal lords and landowners reoccupied the lakes by converting them into fish farms or personal land and displacing fishing community whose only source of livelihood was fishing.