The situation in which fishermen and other economic actors in the Saint-Louis region find themselves does not at all please the President of the Senegal Debout party, in this case Moussa Diop. According to him, the latter are facing a major crisis which threatens their survival and the balance of the local economy. “With the development of the gas project off the coast of Saint-Louis, access to the only fishing area, Diatara, is prohibited, causing considerable harm to local fishermen and the region's economy. This directly affects thousands of families who depend on fishing for their daily livelihood,” Mr. Diop said in a press release made available to us.
The candidate for mayor of Saint-Louis continued: “aware of the negative impact on fishing since the launch of the Grand Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) project, the companies BP, Petrosen and Kosmos Energy have made numerous promises to the fishermen of Saint-Louis, but these are never kept “.
Recalling these commitments, Mr. Diop will retain the installation of artificial reefs to “compensate” for the damage caused by the occupation of Diatara, an essential fishing area for thousands of families, figures prominently. Initially, he added, BP committed to installing twelve artificial reefs. Today, after several unilateral revisions, this number is reduced to a single artificial reef, without any transparency on execution times.
This behavior reflects an absolute disregard for the commitments made and the rights of local populations. “The problem lies not only in empty promises, but also in the non-compliance with Senegalese laws. Sénégal Debout recalls that article 51 of Law No. 2001-01 of January 15, 2001 relating to the Environmental Code clearly stipulates that impacted populations must be compensated before any exploitation. BP, Kosmos Energy and Petrosen cannot continue to circumvent this legal obligation by imposing paltry solutions,” he explained before indicating that faced with this situation, “Sénégal Debout calls on the State of Senegal to intervene firmly so that the promises made by Kosmos Energy, Petrosen and BP are respected. The State must ensure strict application of the law, in particular by requiring compensation from directly impacted communities, before the start of operation of the site and as soon as possible. »
This is how the party also invited the State, on the sidelines of the renegotiation of contracts, to establish a constructive dialogue between stakeholders, in order to find sustainable and balanced solutions which take into account both the needs of fishermen , the preservation of the marine environment and the economic objectives of the country.
“The fishermen of Saint-Louis are not asking for charity, but for dignified and legal compensation for the damage suffered. They have expected too much from multinationals; now is the time to enforce their rights,” he concluded.
YVES TENDENG
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