FISHERMAN Gavino Ringel, 44, a grade school dropout, admitted that he used to butcher dolphins in Tablas Strait between Pola town in Oriental Mindoro and Marinduque.
Ringel, who lives near the Bacawan fish sanctuary in Barangay Bacawan in Pola, had captured and butchered a dolphin thrice, village records show.
On Feb. 28, officials arrested him for the offense.
Ringel, however, was not jailed but made to promise in writing that he would stop butchering dolphins.
His arrest gave the townsfolk a sense of victory and boosted their confidence in implementing environmental laws through collaborative effort.
Section 97 of the Philippine Fishery Code of 1998 prohibits the catching of rare, endangered and threatened species. The dolphin is an endangered species.
“We butchered the dolphins we caught either at the shore or upon catching them at sea. We sold these in Bacawan and Barangay Buhay na Tubig at P50 a kilo,” Ringel said. A dolphin weighs an average of 40 kg.
Ringel also admitted that his 38-year-old wife helped him in his illegal activity. He said they used a motorized boat, spears and flashlight at night to catch dolphins more than 3 kilometers away from the shoreline.
“I realized that village officials were serious in jailing me. I became afraid of what would happen to my family,” said Ringel, who has seven children. The Ringel family lives in a dilapidated house made of woven palm trees and wood.
Poverty
Pola officials said they recognized that poverty makes people break the law. “So we are working on giving them fishnets and alternative livelihood opportunities, despite a budget of only P500,000 for fisheries and agriculture for all 23 barangays,” said Pola Vice Mayor Raul Pagcaliwagan.
Pola is among the eight towns in Oriental Mindoro that is part of the Verde Island Passage, which is internationally recognized for its rich marine biodiversity.
The town and two others in the province—Pinamalayan and Naujan—are expanding their respective fish sanctuaries, said Marilyn Alcañises, program officer of the Provincial Agriculture Office-Fisheries and Coastal Resource Management Division (Pago-FCRMD).
The Pola government plans to expand the Bacawan fish sanctuary to nearby Barangay Tagumpay, involving 25 hectares, and Barangay Puting Cacao, with 49 ha. The sanctuary was established in 2008.
The expansion will be done this month, after a public hearing.
Rhodora Ramiento, agricultural technologist of Pago-FCRMD, said that like the Bacawan fish sanctuary, Puting Cacao and Tagumpay also have coral reefs.
“Puting Cacao has sea grasses, while Tagumpay has giant clams (locally called ‘taklobo’),” she said.
Russel Tan, municipal agricultural technologist-fishery coordinator, said it is the collaborative effort at the barangay and municipal levels that has been helping them protect their marine resources, like in the case of the Bacawan fish sanctuary, located more than 18 km from the poblacion.
Tan said the laws are difficult to implement in the community, where people have ties and are familiar with one another.
“With collaborative effort among the barangay council, Bantay Dagat, municipal government and the police, the implementation of the law becomes more successful,” he said.
Improved condition
During a workshop on marine protected area management planning on July 21 in Pola, Conservation International-Philippines showed Bacawan villagers and officials underwater photographs of the improved condition of their sanctuary.
Ringel was invited as a workshop participant.
“The population of species like the giant clam, octopus, lobster, reef fishes and other marine life has increased. This has been attracting local tourists. Villagers are becoming more aware and cooperative,” said Tan.
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