Juan Carlos González, president of Interempresa Syndicate of Captains of Industrial Fishing Fleet Ship.

Industrial sector crewmen and captains criticize politicians for 'giant squid bill'

CHILE
Wednesday, July 18, 2018, 21:30 (GMT + 9)

The Embarked Workers of the Industrial Fishing Fleet, specifically Interempresa Syndicates of Crewmen and Captains, expressed scorn towards politicians, especially towards most of the current parliamentarians, for the consequences being caused by "wrong decisions, without technical basis, of groups that ideologize their agreements without considering the citizens".

The foregoing was informed by the presidents of Interempresa Syndicates of Crewmen, and that of Captains, of Ships of the Industrial Fishing Fleet, Hugo Roa, and Juan Carlos González, respectively, in reaction to what was reported by fishing companies that will be affected by the giant squid bill, which sets that giant squid must be caught with the artisanal technique. In this regard, they explained that there will be at least 900 dismissals, between regions V and VII and at least one company is considering moving the processing plant abroad.

Industrial Fishing Workers have been warning for months about the disastrous consequences of the bill - which reached the Senate - and even carried out work stoppages, demonstrations in the streets and parades in view of the progress of the issue in Parliament "without politicians having even the decency to listen to workers," said Gonzalez.

Politicians were discovered to have done something very bad because the opposition is privileging their political interests and sacrificing those of citizens’ related to job and social stability, said Gonzalez. In addition, he denounced that the agreements of the political leaders dominate the decisions and that is causing large factory closure, deep discouragement for the permanent change of rules of the game and leads to the ruin of the workers that today are going through a deep instability.

On the particular issue of the giant squid, he indicated that they have trust in the talks that they have held with the government, particularly with the vice president of the Republic, Andrés Chadwick, in the sense that that will be reversed, ultimately, with a presidential veto "the horrendous decision to legislate against the majority of citizens, experts’ opinions and without even having the basis to defend their hypotheses".

Hugo Roa agreed that thousands of families are being sacrificed when companies are closed, and nobody, except union organizations, says anything. He called on the big unions to raise their voices and declared their concern over the announcement of dismissals in the fishing sector and, what is more disturbing, "that we intend to emigrate to other countries that give them more legal certainty".

The sector is concerned about the giant squid bill because of what it carries in itself and because other indications will follow, "since they want to eliminate the Chilean fishing industry."

Related articles:

- Undersecretary explains Executive’s opposition to giant squid bill
- Bill regulating giant squid fishery goes to Senate
- Valparaíso SMEs reject bill regulating giant squid fishery
- ASIPES insists on manual giant squid catch parliamentary project unconstitutionality

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