Fishing with cyanide and explosives is illegal but commonly practiced throughout Indonesia. Non target species are indiscriminately killed and the coral reef framework is destroyed, reducing the productivity of the affected fishing grounds for decades to come.
This documentary features interviews with residents of Balobaloang, a small island in the Sabalana Island group halfway between Sulawesi and Sumbawa. The people interviewed talk about how blast and cyanide fishermen from outside are depleting their traditional fishing grounds, and how they are powerless to do anything against it as long as local government agencies collude with the perpetrators.
The film crew then goes out to the sea where a bomb has just been thrown, and one of the blast fishermen is interviewed next. He refuses to see anything wrong with what he is doing, according to him it is the only way he can make money quickly.
The documentary concludes with a few more interviews with islanders, among them the caretaker of the local mosque who is worried that the excessive bombing might lead to its collapse.
At the end of the documentary, the filmmakers express their hope that the district government in Pangkep will take action soon to help the residents of Balobaloang protect their traditional fishing grounds.
This documentary features interviews with residents of Balobaloang, a small island in the Sabalana Island group halfway between Sulawesi and Sumbawa. The people interviewed talk about how blast and cyanide fishermen from outside are depleting their traditional fishing grounds, and how they are powerless to do anything against it as long as local government agencies collude with the perpetrators.
The film crew then goes out to the sea where a bomb has just been thrown, and one of the blast fishermen is interviewed next. He refuses to see anything wrong with what he is doing, according to him it is the only way he can make money quickly.
The documentary concludes with a few more interviews with islanders, among them the caretaker of the local mosque who is worried that the excessive bombing might lead to its collapse.
At the end of the documentary, the filmmakers express their hope that the district government in Pangkep will take action soon to help the residents of Balobaloang protect their traditional fishing grounds.
IMPORTANT NOTE: I didn’t make this documentary myself, credits go to the filmmaker Amelia Hapsari. I was given the file by Horst Liebner and added subtitles to make it understandable for an international audience, because i felt this topic deserves more publicity.