SouthernFisherfolk:Songkhla EU Pier?

[GWR]

Busy Times At Songkhla Shipyard - February 28, 2004 :-

http://www.haig-brown.com/hottips/hotip247.htm

February 28, 2004
Busy Times At Songkhla Shipyard
http://www.haig-brown.com/hottips/images/247a.jpg
[All Photos: http://www.haig-brown.com - Damage from trawl doors to guards is repaired fore and aft.]

This past February was a busy time at the Duangpramong Ship Repair Yard, at Songkhla near Hat Yai in Southern Thailand. While the popular media was filled with stories of violence between the local Muslim fundamentalists and government forces, the fishermen of the south, Buddhist and Muslim alike, got on with the business of making boats seaworthy for the long sea voyages. Trawlers that fish the Gulf of Thailand and waters south to Indonesia still work their gear over the side so damage to the guards caused by the heavy doors being raised must be repaired, soft planks need replacing, shaft need to be pulled and straightened and hulls need to be recaulked. All of this work was being undertaken for a mix of wooden fishing and tender boats.

http://www.haig-brown.com/hottips/images/247b.jpg
[The finishing touches are being added to the recaulking on this side trawler.]

http://www.haig-brown.com/hottips/images/247e.jpg
[The M. V. Cho Chochaisathaporn loaded half way to her bulwarks with ice and empty fish barrels, is ready to sail for southern fishing grounds.]

The skill levels that result from the huge volume of work would be the envy of heritage boat yards in the western nations. At the same time, the Thai fleet continues to get new wooden boats, but increasingly, owners are building in steel for the long term economics of not replacing damaged and rotted wood. But wood or steel, the engines of choice among Thailand’s fishing fleet remains the inline six cylinder Cummins KTA19 and the V-12 cylinder Cummins KTA38.

The month of February saw new boats being built for Canadian fishermen in Newfoundland with these engines, repowers being undertaken for American fishermen in Oregon and similar decisions made by fishermen in far flung locals as Germany and Hong Kong. Both these engines have proven their reliability and cost effective maintenance in economially demanding and environmentally challenging fisheries the world over.


http://www.haig-brown.com/hottips/images/247g.jpg
[Mr. Samarn Srisawai builds a trawl net at the Chaiwat Jan-oon net loft near the shipyard.]

In Songkhla a majority of boats are Cummins powered. A typical Songkhla boat was the M. V. Cho Chochaisathaporn of about 25 metres. Just returned to the water after her periodic refit, she was ready to leave on the morning tide. Built at Mae Klong in Samut Songkhram province at the northwest corner of the Gulf of Thailand about ten years ago, she has her original Cummins KTA38. According to people at the Songkhla yard, Mae Klong is reputed to have the best wooden boat craftsmen and most cost effective material and wood supplies. Boat lumber can be 30 to 50% more expensive by the time it is delivered to the Songkhla in the south.

The Cho Chochaisathaporn, skippered by Capt. Udom Kalaket, carries up to 1,200 ice barrels. As a tender, she travels several days south to the fishing grounds where she delivers ice and empty barrels to the fishing fleet and takes their filled barrels in exchange. She then travels back to Songkhla with fresh fish for the domestic market. A typical ten day trip requires up to 8 days of travel for the round trip and 2 or 3 days of collecting fish on the grounds. The fishing boats average two to four metric tonnes of catch per day. The Cho Chochaisathaporn’s owner belongs to the Songkhla Fishing Boats Association, which is headed by Khun (Mr) Pilaporn Aekaluk.
http://www.haig-brown.com/hottips/hotip247.htm

[GWR]

MCOT TNA English News. Good example of a report that seems to have slipped the attention of most local English language news sources. Makes you wonder how much the crew were paid to work in such a deathtrap:

Five trawler crew die from toxic gas
SATUN, March 6 (TNA) – Poisonous gas from piles of rotting and decayed fish kept in a trawler's bilge killed five fishermen at sea off the southern province of Satun Tuesday.

The fishing boat was towed to shore on Tuesday morning and police inspected the bodies identified as Chacharin Choosri, Chiaya Raksamoewong, Keng Changyao, Panya, and Mai.

All were crew of the fishing trawler Uandam, which left shore on March 5.

Some crew lost consciousness when they were cleaning the bilge of knee-deep water due to toxic gas from rotten fish.

Their fellows who went below to help them were also found dead. Only two crew members survived and are now hospitalised. (TNA)-E004

http://etna.mcot.net/query.php?nid=28290

[GWR]

It should be explained that there is actually an Indonesian Consulate in Songkhla, which I believe mainly concerns itself with the fishing in its waters by Songkhla trawlers. They are probably debating the re-establishment of a direct flight from Hat-Yai to Medan. There was one in the past, but I believe it was shortlived. It might suit a LCC:

23 August 2007
Songkhla-North Sumatra of Indonesia to work on economic expansions in the two cities
Songkhla (สงขลา) Governor Sonthi Techanan (สนธิ เตชานันท์) discusses with Indonesian consuls to Songkhla Province on cooperation to develop economy in the two cities.

This morning, at the Songkhla City Hall, Mr Sonthi has welcomed Indonesian consuls coming to attend a meeting concerning the bilateral cooperation to develop economy between Songkhla and North Sumatra of Indonesia.

The discussion is divided in two main subjects, including fishery cooperation, and the launch of a Thailand –Indonesian new airline. He said at present, there is no direct flight between Hat Yai (หาดใหญ่) and Indonesia; those flying to the two destinations will have to transit Penang (มาเลเซีย) of Malaysia.

As for the cooperation in fishery with Indonesia, Mr. Sonthi says that another round of discussion concerning the subject will be arranged again after his discussion with relevant agencies.
Reporter : RTI-Reporter04

http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish/previewnews.php?news_id=255008230034

[GWR]

Songkhla fishermen hard-hit by rising oil prices

(BangkokPost.com) – Fishermen in Songkhla province have caved into increasing pressure to find money to feed their family as global oil prices continue to push local prices up.

Sophon Chumyuang, core leader of a group of fishermen in the southern province of Songkhla, revealed that fishermen have been suffering huge losses from the soaring price of diesel, now selling at nearly 30 baht per litre, and that many are now considering abandoning their boats permanently.

“The volatility of oil prices has had a massive impact on our lives and we are ready to find other ways of making a living,” he said.

Up to 1,000 fishing boats have now been left out at sea [Do they mean, "Stopped going to sea"?] by their owners who are hoping to send out a clear message of desperation to the government.

Many have reportedly sold their boats. Others, more desperate, choose to dismantle their crafts and sell the parts one piece at a time.


Link may expire:
http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/breakingnews.php?id=123983

[GWR]

95 % of Songkhla small, medium-sized fishing operators out of business

Songkhla - Over 95 per cent of small and medium-sized fishing boats in this southern border province have gone out of business following rising diesel oil prices, the vice president of the Songkhla Fishery Association said Thursday.

Sawai Jeyakhom, the vice president of the association, said the fishing boats in the province have gradually gone out of business after the diesel oil price shot u.

Eventually, after the diesel oil rose to Bt30 per litre, only about 200 out of 2,000 small and [medium-sized] fishing boats in the province remained in business, he said.

The Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/read.php?newsid=30061771

[GWR]

See also two previous posts

THAILAND: For Fisheries, Depleted Seas Worse Than Insurgency
By Marwaan Macan-Markar

PATTANI, Thailand, Jul 5 (IPS) - Rohana Samu is among the fortunate. She is glad to have steady work for the past four years no matter how monotonous her job is -- working an eight-hour shift daily in a frigid room, cleaning fish.

It is a view shared by other Malay-Muslims who, like the 32-year-old Rohana, spend a similar stretch in a large, sealed-off room preparing fresh fish like sardine, threadfin bream and lizardfish for one of this southern province's fish processing companies.

The products from the company Rohana works at are shipped to foreign markets such as Japan. They range from thick slabs of minced fish, which are served fried or blended in noodle soup, to canned fish in a range of sauces, including tomato.

But the sense of job security that Rohana and other women employed in Pattani's fisheries industry have is not a common sentiment shared across this southern Thai province. Many other economic sectors have taken a beating due to an unfolding insurgency that has plagued Pattani and its neighbouring provinces of Yala and Narathiwat since January 2004.

In late March, the Thai government revealed that 108 factories had closed over the past four years in the three southern provinces near the Malaysian border. Other indicators are as troubling in a region with a predominantly Malay-Muslim population, Buddhist Thailand's largest minority. The three provinces are among the poorest, the government stated, with economic growth averaging 1.8 percent annually, as against the 4.3 percent annual growth rates in the entire south.

Yet one would not get that sense when talking to Naiyana Saengprajong, chief of sales and export at Chaicharoen Marine Co., Ltd, one of the pillars of this province's fisheries industry.

"Our production line has not been affected by the conflict," she said in an interview. "We still export 60 percent of our products to Japan, South Korea, Singapore and the U.S."

Pattani's governor feels likewise of the fishing sector in this province, which faces the Gulf of Thailand. "The economy of Pattani averages 26 billion baht (777 million U.S. dollars) a year, of which the fisheries sector accounts for 33 percent," Panu Uthairat, the governor, told journalists. "There are 17 fishing factories in operation."

"The fishing industry is very important for us; it is one of the major economies in the province," he adds of the sector that is fed by over 700 fishing trawlers and commercial boats and smaller boats operated by some 20,000 households.

If anything, the problems the fishing sector has faced in recent years is one that is shared globally -- the rapid spike in the price of oil and a drop in the regular catch of fish in nearby waters and in the seas beyond the Gulf.

"The increase in oil prices has meant more boats staying in the port than going out to sea," Wasan Sriwatana, director of the Pattani fisheries provincial office, told IPS. "Overfishing in the previous years has also seen a drop in the catch."

When the seas seemed abundant -- with some Thai trawlers going as far as Indonesia to fish -- the monthly catch brought into Pattani ranged from 10,000 to 13,000 tonnes of fish, the fisheries office records reveal. But it has halved since then, with only 5,000 tonnes of fish brought in by the boats every month to feed the fish industry's production line.

The fishing sector's ability to survive largely unscathed in the violence-scarred south stems from a mix of circumstances, says Srisompop Chitpiromsri, a political science lecturer at the Prince of Songkhla University, in Pattani. "Most of the fishing activity takes place in urban areas and near villages where there are strong local leaders who work with civil society groups when there are problems."

"And with one exception, the militants have not targeted boats going out to sea," Srisompop, who is also the editor of Deep South Watch, a group monitoring the conflict, told IPS. "In early 2007 there was one attack, where the militants burnt some boats and a fisheries office. That was due to a conflict with a local community leader."

By contrast, he says, people working in the remote rubber plantations and paddy fields in Narathiwat and Yala have been attacked since the current conflict between government troops and Malay-Muslim insurgents exploded. "The rubber plantations and rice fields are close to villages where the militants go for their recruits or near the mountains covered with forests that they use as part of their operations," Srisompop said.

The rubber plantations have been the worst hit, Col. Acra Tiproche, the army spokesman, confirmed to IPS. "We have to deploy troops to clear the plantations before the rubber tappers go out. Many of them have been attacked since they have to go before sunrise to tap the trees for the latex."

The current conflict is the latest in a cycle of violence going back decades. An earlier generation of Malay-Muslim rebels fought Thai troops in an effort to carve out a separate Malay-Muslim state that included Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat. These three provinces had once been part of the Malay-Muslim kingdom of Pattani before they were annexed in 1902 by Siam, as Thailand was then known.

The grievances that gave rise to the earlier conflict -- such as cultural discrimination, suppression of the Malay-Muslim's language, Yawi, and limited economic opportunities -- still prevail. So, too, the heavy-handed manner in which the Thai state and its troops treat the locals.

The current conflict has claimed over 3,000 lives since January 2004, with majority of the victims being the Malay-Muslims. In 2007, alone, there were over 2,600 attacks, a dramatic spike from the over 1,300 that had been recorded in the first year of the violence.

Rohana, a resident of Pattani, is aware of the troubled terrain she has to cover when going for work. She is always on guard for possible attacks when she leaves her home. "We can never say when it will happen, but I have to work to support my family," she says. "I am glad that this conflict has not affected my job."

http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=43084

[GWR]

Floating gas station busted

http://www.phuketgazette.com/newsimages/bull7152008-6637-1.jpg
[Photo: Phuket Gazette - The converted fishing boat was found to be carrying about 3,000 liters of illegal diesel on board.]

AO MAKHAM: Phuket Customs officers on July 10 arrested two men found on board a Thai-registered boat carrying 3,000 liters of illegal diesel off the coast of Satun.

Customs officers apprehended the vessel at sea 17 nautical miles north of Koh Adang in Satun province at 5:30 pm on July 10, Somchai Poolsawasdi, director of the Royal Thai Customs Investigation and Suppression Bureau, told a press conference on July 11.

He explained that undercover Customs agents had heard that the fishing boat Tor Sittichai Namchoke 5 had been converted into a floating gas station out at sea and had been modified with diesel tanks and a pump.

The offshore gas station received fuel from Malaysian fishing boats and sold it on to Thai fishing boats, K. Somchai said.

In 2002, Thailand starting coloring its marine diesel green in an effort to deter fuel smugglers. However, the fuel found on board Tor Sittichai Namchoke 5 was yellow, police said.

“The three tanks in the vessel could hold around 12,000 liters, but most of it had already been sold. About 3,000 liters was found in their tanks” K. Somchai said.

“They bought the fuel from a neighboring country, probably for less than 20 baht a liter, then used rubber pipes to move the fuel from boat to boat at sea” he said, adding that the gas, boat and pump had a combined value of about 682,000 baht.

Prasert Kaew la-ead, captain of the Tor Sittichai Namchoke 5, and his crewman were taken to Phuket City Police for further questioning. At the time of going to press, the Gazette had yet to confirm that the men have been charged.

Phuket, Thailand
17:29 local time (GMT +7)
http://www.phuketgazette.com/news/index.asp?id=6638

[GWR]

See yesterday's previous post on connected topic

Standard diesel is a sort of yellowy-orange in Thailand. Since 2002, marine diesel has been green. They say purple petrol below, but I'm pretty sure they mean purple diesel:

A specially priced fuel for fishing boats under a ‘purple petrol’ program is expected to start service by the end of this month

http://thainews.prd.go.th/news/andamannews-files/Andman-20080716_432.jpg
[Photo: PRD]

The Department of Fisheries is now asking fishing boats which wish to participate in a so called ‘purple petrol’ program to check their name lists of boat registration codes and the lists of participating petrol stations at their provincial or district office of Fisheries and the Fishing Port. Boats which have not registered but want to participate in the program can obtain the form at the office as well. The Phuket provincial Chief of Fisheries Pairoh Sutthakorn said the purple petrol price will be 2 baht cheaper than the market price. The ‘purple petrol’ sale is limited at not more than 15 million liters per month. In Phuket, after getting the number of participating boats, then a committee will hold a meeting to consider the approvals. As for the local fishing boats which also operate as tourists boats, if they have registered with the Department of Fisheries, they can also join in. The officials expect to start the service by the end of this month
http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish/previewnews2.php?news_id=432

[Wisarut]

Now the cheap Diesel from Russia has wreck havoc on the cabinate beofre wreckign havoc on the engines of Fishermen's ships

http://www.manager.co.th/StockMarket/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000083618

[GWR]

Agriculture Ministry confident fishery pier in Songkhla will pass EU’s assessment

Deputy Minister of Agricultural and Cooperatives Somphat Kaewphichit (สมพัฒน์ แก้วพิจิตร) visited a fishery pier in Songkhla province to expedite the improvement of its environmental standard prior to an assessment by the European Union.

The deputy minister says the pier was examined by the EU in 2005 but it did not pass the assessment criteria. The pier will be inspected by EU officials again on September 19th this year. The export of fish and other marine animals from the pier will be banned if it fails the assessment for the second time, Mr Somphat says.

The deputy minister says he has instructed the Fish Marketing Organization to cooperate with the Fisheries Department, the private sector, and the Nakhon Songkhla Municipality, in speeding up improvements of the pier for greater cleaniness and safety. He says the ministry has outlined plans for the pier's development.

Mr Somphat says he is confident that the pier will meet the EU's standards before the assessment in September.
http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish/previewnews.php?news_id=255108160011