IUF Asia/Pacific and TEAM welcome the new Yellowfin Tuna Fishers Union in the Maldives
TEAM General Secretary, Mauroof Zakir, addresses the inauguration of the new union of Bodu Kanneli Masveringe Union (BKMU)
The IUF Asia/Pacific and its affiliated union, Tourism Employees Association of the Maldives (TEAM) welcomed the formation of the first fisheries workers’ trade union in the Maldives, Bodu Kanneli Masveringe Union (BKMU), the Yellowfin Tuna Fishers Union. At the event held on December 10, 2020, National Fishers’ Day, fisheries workers on more than 70 vessels converged at sea to inaugurate the new union. A peaceful protest at sea was held to bring attention to BKMU’s call for greater government support in promoting sustainable development of the yellowfin tuna industry in ways that would provide greater benefits to fisheries workers and the people of the Maldives.
Earlier this year the General Secretary of TEAM, Mauroof Zakir, included sustainable fisheries in TEAM’s official statement on World Tourism Day, September 27: “We also call on the government to give greater attention to rural development, to improve our local food supply, promote innovative local farming, support sustainable ocean farming, and invest more in value-added fisheries to create new and better jobs.