Fishermen without a fishing harbor are like fish on dry land. They hear the same promises year after year.
"In my opinion, the situation is chaotic, we have nowhere to moor the ships, that's the entire Montenegrin coast. The fishing port, first, protects the ships in case of storms, then, there you have complete logistics for fishing, from refrigerators, electricity, water, the first landing of fish, and we we don't have all that, we are scattered, I'm standing here, one colleague is standing in Krašići, the other is in Kostanjica...", said Marko Kise from National Association of Fish Producers
How do fishermen do without a port?
"So here, with big promises, from these to those, everyone comes, visits, promises, in the end, nothing," said Silvio Tonsati from the Association of Professional Fishermen "Škver".
Fishermen hoped to get a port in Njivice, because it was planned there in 2012 during the mandate of Tarzan Milošević. This plan was abandoned, so after 7 years of waiting and unfulfilled promises, the fishermen propose that they be temporarily allowed to use part of the new Port in Meljina, which should be built soon.
"We asked the Minister of Agriculture, Milutin Simović, to urge the Government to provide us with moorings here in this marina, which is almost finished," said Kise.
So to be here temporarily?
"Temporarily or permanently, if they're not going to do anything else," Kise said.
And what was the answer?
"We don't have an answer," Kise added.
However, from the Directorate for Fisheries, in the Ministry of Agriculture, TV Vijesti replied that it is feasible.
"On a certain part of that breakwater, about 60 percent should be designated for female fishermen, it is up to us, the state, and the institutions to control whether the distribution of the berths provided for in the project will be done in the right way when that project is completed. as foreseen by the project," said Slavica Pavlović from the Fisheries Directorate.
In Meljina, fishermen would be satisfied with about 10 moorings for larger ships and about 20 for smaller ones. However, for a permanent solution of the fishing ports, they will have to wait at least a few more years. Officials highlight the World Bank's MIDAS 2 project, which started last year, within which 10 million euros are earmarked for fisheries.
"Through that World Bank project, the plan is that by the end of the implementation of that project, we will have at least two fishing ports, one in Boka, one in Ulcinj and one in Bar, actually three fishing ports for the mooring of fishing boats," said Pavlović.
Until what year?
"Until 2023," Pavloić added.
The fishermen repeat that they have been waiting for years and that money cannot be an excuse.
"Since there is money to build marinas for expensive yachts, in Oblatno, in Tivat, now there will be interested people in Bijela, in Kumbor, in Meljina, you can let someone build a fishing port and a hundred more berths for yourself and they will build you a fishing port for free port, you don't even have to have money," said Kise.
Fishermen work worse and earn less because of old boats, bad placement, poaching and high taxes. All these problems await resolution within the demanding negotiation chapter 13. Time is running out, while our neighbors, the Croats and the Italians, are making maximum use of their resources.
See the longer version of the story in Bez granica magazine
Bonus video:
