The fishermen protesting against the Vizhinjam seaport may get some backing up with the Latin Archdiocese, Thiruvananthapuram, which spearheads the agitation against the port, deciding to read out a pastoral letter in the churches under the diocese on Sunday.
The protesters kept up their stir on Saturday, laying siege to the port and in consequence, disrupting the works.
A ministerial-level talk with the representatives of fishermen will also be held on Sunday as part of finding a solution to the issue.
The fishermen had raised around seven demands including rehabilitation of coastal erosion-affected families, a scientific study to assess the alleged damage caused to the shoreline by the port construction after stalling the port work, and subsidised kerosene for the fishermen, etc. The talks held so far have almost reached a consensus on five demands. But the protesters were insisting that any compromise without stopping the construction of the port work would not be accepted.
Fr. Theodosius D’Cruz of Latin Archdiocese, asked what was the benefit of providing subsidised kerosene and other relief measures to fishermen if there was no shoreline. “So our main demand is stopping the port work at the earliest. The present phase of protest will continue till September 4 and the next round of protest will be decided after this phase,” says Fr. D’Cruz.
