The president of the Fisheries Commission, Daniella Cicardini (PS), described the general approval of the project on the new Fisheries Law as a long-awaited desire for many.
The legislative body unanimously supported, by 11 votes in favor, the Executive’s initiative. The legal text proposes a new body of legislated regulations for citizens, replacing Law No. 20,657.
The Executive’s proposal seeks to “contribute to reinforcing not only trust and certainty in the actors that are part of the fishing sector, but also in democracy and the rule of law, as a whole.”
The ruling party celebrated the approval of the project in the House. This “places a definitive tombstone to the corrupt Longueira Law,” said deputy Gael Yeomans (CS).
Deputy Diego Ibáñez (CS) expressed himself along the same lines as his co-religionist. “The new Fisheries Law puts an end to the corrupt Longueira Law,” he said.
“Now comes the debate article by article and continuing to listen to artisanal fishing organizations. A small step to banish corruption in politics,” added Deputy Ibáñez.
From the DR, deputy Jorge Brito maintained that this is a very important step for artisanal fishing, to recover sovereignty and “clean up the corruption that is still in force.”
Beginning
The Chamber explained that the text seeks to prioritize the strengthening of science in the management of fishing resources and establish the preeminence of the scientific principle in the administration and conservation decisions of these resources. It also seeks to promote free competition and clear rules for the fishing industry, protecting workers from regulatory changes.
In addition, it seeks to recognize the cultural importance of artisanal fishing and proposes to modernize its regulatory framework. A transitional regime would be established to repeal the current Fisheries Law and maintain provisions on aquaculture, as well as to transition regulations related to access to fishing activity.
Executive
The Undersecretary of Fisheries, Julio Salas, highlighted that “in a tense political environment” progress has been made in this decision. He thanked the commission for compliance with the matter, recalling that there were more than 200 meetings throughout the country to address the standard.
In this sense, he stressed that the process has been transparent, reiterating that it should not be forgotten that the previous discussion was summarized in a report from the Catholic University of Valparaíso as well as documented on video. That is, “total transparency,” she said.
The undersecretary stressed the Executive’s commitment to moving the project forward. This, addressing the aforementioned law separately from the matter of aquaculture, anticipating that there are already dialogues for the construction of a proposal of this type.
In this order, he reiterated the value of the commission’s work and the decision to continue receiving hearings and sessions on the ground after general approval, to enrich the process.
The representative pointed out that it should not be forgotten that they are working on a law for a fishing power. “Our fishery between 2018 and 2022 has reached 126 countries,” he said.
“All this activity is carried out with significant protection of the oceans, aspiring to be a world reference in terms of sustainable fisheries,” the undersecretary concluded.