Naboutini village
Posted by Andrew at 10:47 PM, July 12, 2004
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| (C) Greenpeace/Natalie Behring |
It's five o' clock in the morning and I'm standing on the balcony on the phone with Michelle. We're trying to decide if it's raining. "Well, there is water in the air moving vertically downward," I said, "But I think it's more like a drizzle."
We had arranged the day before to meet Conway, a Suva local, if it was NOT raining. Now Michelle and I were trying to guess what a Fijian would call "raining" - as opposed to "rainy", "drizzling" or "a little damp out"? In hindsight, I suspect Conway was blissfully asleep when we called him to say we were on the way, but after we sorted out the Fijian definition of "hill", we picked him up right were he said he would be.
Larger photo
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(C) Greenpeace |
A two-hour drive brought us to Naboutini village where Opeti Nakabiti had kindly agreed to take us out fishing. When we arrived we found him eating a breakfast of toast. He seemed surprised to see us (I think because it was so rainy), but the villagers were still game and soon had carried two fishing boats down to the bay. Norbert (videographer), Natalie (photographer), Conway and I got in one with a villager at the back to pole it. Opeti and two other villagers went in the other with the net, and we headed out.
Now, you may not believe me, but I am telling you that we were fully prepared to travel kilometers out to sea in stormy weather in this small boat to document local fishing practices. As it turned out we only went a few hundred meters. Once we out there, Norbert complained that he couldn't get a good shot from our wobbly boat so Conway jumped out to steady it. That's when I realized the water was only knee deep.
By now feeling considerably less heroic, I joined Conway in the water, and Norbert was able to get some good footage of the people in the other boat stringing the net out in a semi-circle facing land. Next, the villagers started whacking the water with their big poles to scare the fish towards the net. I think they normally would have left the net out longer, but really they were just showing us the technique so they soon pulled it in.
When we asked Opeti, and the other local fishermen, about the role of fish in their daily lives, they echoed much of the same sentiments we had heard in Namakala. The fish they catch here are an important part of their diet and vital to their culture. Villagers also sell the fish by the side of the road to make a little money. Then Opeti showed us the mangrove trees they had planted to help control run off from a nearby logging operation, and provide fish habitat. He said the mangroves, planted in his lifetime, have paid off with improved catches. It was obvious from talking to him that he thinks of the local fish stocks in long-term time scales - steps taken during his life to benefit his children and grand children.
Greenpeace's work in this region focuses on the bigger picture - looking at large scale industrial fishing, and it's possible impact on the livelihood of coastal communities - but lessons learned from local fishermen can often be applied on the larger scale. In this case, for example, we were reminded about the importance of taking a long-term view when dealing with fisheries issues. We also learned more about the importance of fish to Fijians, and that healthy fish stocks cannot be taken for granted.
After changing into dry clothes, I joined the rest of the team for tea and biscuits with Opeti and his family. The day was clearing up when the documentation team and I left - feeling lucky to meet Opeti and the other Naboutini villagers, and listen to what they had to say about fish and Fijians.
