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Huvadhu atoll poverty stricken as fishing industry collapses and shops tighten credit by Mohamed Yushau, Viligili island, Gaaf Alif atoll (Nth Huvadhu) 6 November 2001 from Haveeru, translated by Maldives Culture editors Sea Cucumbers Fishermen say the collection of these creatures is destroying baitfish grounds A serious fall in fishing catches is affecting Huvadhu people in many ways. There is only one topic of conversation - the lack of fish. It is a time of serious economic depression. 'Even today, many people have come in to borrow money. I gave some people Rf100 (US$8), others Rf50 (US$4), and Rf20 (US$1.60),' says a person who is slightly better off than most on Viligili. Fishermen look after their families with the money they get by selling what they catch on that day. If they don't get that bit of money each day they have to borrow food on credit from shops. And they can only repay their debts if they catch fish. This is the problem which the atoll people are facing now. Shop owners say that business has never been so bad, and it is all due to the fall-off in fishing catches. 'The fasting month is almost here. Business used to be very active at this time of year.Only a very few people are buying spices at the moment,' said Akli waheed, owner of Fassiya shop in Viligili. And shopowners in Thinadhoo are saying that only other shopkeepers, and the very few people who have government jobs, are coming from the other islands to shop there. Grouper Protects baitfish from predators 'Shopping is very poor for this time of year. This bad situation will remain until the fishing improves again. People are living in extremely hard circumstances,' said Abdullah Zubair, manager of the shop 'New Zeal 2' in Thinadhoo. Shops in Huvadhu atoll have completely suspended all credit. Shopkeepers on the most populous two islands, Viligili and Thinadhoo, said they were owed so much money they could no longer aford to supply goods on credit. 'People have stopped paying their debts. We had to stop lending,' said the manager of 'Zamanee' in Thinadhoo. A Viligili shopowner said that he had sold goods valued over Rf150,000 (nearly US$12,000) on credit and none of the debts had been paid. 'That's why we stopped credit. Some would ask how we ever manage to stay in business in an island with such huge credit outlays. But that's the reality we face. What are these people going to pay with? I'm not going to take them to court!' said Ibrahim Rasheed, manager of Raiyvilla Store in Viligili. Fishing began to deteriorate around Huvadhu atoll at the beginning of this year, 2001, and for the past ten months there has been no fishing at all due mainly to a serious shortage of baitfish. All the fishermen put the blame for the lack of baitfish on the people who catch sea cucumbers and grouper fish. 'These people must take full responsibility for the fishing problem. There can be no fishing because there is no baitfish,' said the captain of a large fishing boat in Thinadhoo. Most of the fishing vessels in Huvadhu atoll are large boats and it is expensive to operate them. The owners cannot cover expenses so most of the vessels stay anchored in the harbour. The entire atoll is suffering an economic depression that will only be shaken off when good fishing returns. Everyone in the atoll is hoping for that day. top

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Maldives Culture is an independent internet magazine of Maldivian cultural issues.
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