The president of the union, Hernán Cortés, warned that the decision by the Undersecretary of Fisheries aims to give "artificial respiration" to the Longueira law and puts social peace at risk in the fishing communities of Chile. The National Alliance for the Defense of Artisanal Fishing described the announcement by the Undersecretary of Fisheries to withdraw the New Fishing Law project from parliamentary discussion as a cold shower and a "sign of political weakness. " For the organization, this measure not only stagnates the development of the sector but also deepens the legitimacy crisis by keeping the current regulations in place.
"Withdrawing this project is, in practice, giving 'artificial respiration' to the current Longueira Law, a regulation born from corruption that has harmed Chile so much," criticized Hernán Cortés, who is also the president of FENASPAR Chile. According to the leader, the government has chosen to align itself with the interests of the large industry, seeking a "political lease" instead of fulfilling its commitments to artisanal fishing. Funding for the Social Platform at risk One of the most critical points highlighted by the union is the abandonment of mechanisms for bidding and auctioning industrial quotas.
Cortés explained that, although the recent Fractionation Law helped balance the distribution of resources, there is still a large percentage of the industrial quota assigned "by hand" that pays up to eight times less to the treasury than what would correspond in a transparent market. "Bidding is not just a fishing technique; it is the financial engine of the Social Platform for Artisanal Fishing. If the government removes the bidding from the table, it takes away funding for social security, dignified pensions, and support for our families.
A reform without funding is simply a façade for everything to remain the same," stated the leader of CONDEPP. Risk of social conflict The National Alliance for the Defense of Artisanal Fishing warns that postponing the structural reform of the sector is "playing with fire. " The organization recalled the dark episodes of the so-called "Longueira Fishing Table," noting that discontent in the fishing communities is reaching a point of no return.
"The public will not accept the maintenance of a law born from corruption. If the institutional path is closed or artificially delayed to favor a limited group of fishing companies that divided the marine resources, the discontent will overflow any possibility of dialogue," warned Cortés. Finally, the Council made an urgent call to the Executive to reconsider and not archive the Social Platform, demanding that any new fishing agenda be responsible, transparent, and funded by the same industrial activity that currently benefits from the resources of all Chileans.