2024-02-14 15:28:56
As “hateful”, “yuppicitos” and “gomelos” and even “racist”, the Minister of Agriculture, Jhenifer Mojica, described decree 281 of 2021 that prohibits fishing in Colombia – including artisanal fishing – and the sale of shark fins.
From Buenaventura, in the department of Valle del Cauca, where ancestral fishermen insist on maintaining this practice, the minister spoke out against the ban that exists in the country on the so-called “finning” and that protects some 76 species of shark that have been identified in the Colombian territorial sea.
“It cannot be thought that the lives of sharks are more valuable than those of people. A hateful decree, a ‘yuppie’ decree says our president Gustavo Petro, of the ‘yuppicitos’, of the gomelos like those who make these decisions, not only turning their backs on him, but truly giving a clear example of what racism is,” they were the words of the minister in an auditorium during the signing of the community governance pact for sustainable fishing in the port.
And the practice of “finning”, a fishing technique that consists of cutting off the fins of sharks and throwing the body into the sea, caused a controversy in 2019 due to a resolution that, according to animal activists, was not severe enough against the shark predation.
This led to the National Aquaculture and Fisheries Authority, Aunap, issuing a resolution that prohibits shark fishing in the country, even ancestral fishing.
Read here: The controversy over the decree prepared by the MinAgricultura on agrarian processes and domain extinction
The topic returned to the discussion just a few days ago, when the ministries of Agriculture, Environment, Equality and the Aunap approved resolution 0119, which allows the use and commercialization as bycatch of 11 species of sharks and four species of rays, of which 13 are in danger of extinction.
The director of Aunap Karen Mejía defended the resolution, at the time, due to the socioeconomic problems in the coastal regions.
“We began to review in these techniques all the particular situations and which were the species that landed the most on the coasts and from this a decision was reached to include species of sharks and rays as a fishing and non-hydrobiological resource,” explained Mejía. .
He also insisted that they are not authorizing fishing for sharks and rays, but rather the use of bycatch of these species.
“Our fishermen do not go out to fish for sharks, that is not their objective, but incidentally a shark falls on them and that is the purpose of the measure, to have that management when that situation arises, because it is dangerous,” he added.
In this sense, the ministries and the Aunap also spoke jointly. “The prohibition of fishing directed at sharks and marine rays is reiterated, as well as the international marketing (imports and exports) of the products and by-products of these species.”
Criticism of the minister’s speech
Criticism of the minister’s statement was immediate and came from Congress, as animalist senator Andrea Padilla responded to what Mojica said, calling it a speech “full of hate and resentment,” as well as “childish” and “ class”.
Keep reading: While MinAgricultura says that 100 thousand hectares of land were purchased in 2023, Petro’s newspaper says it was 230 thousand, who to believe?
“What makes you think that those of us who defend animals and nature, as well as people, with the conviction that there is something for everyone and that we all deserve and have rights, are ‘gomelos’ or ‘yuppies’? These childish and classist terms despise a vital, noble and just cause, as well as an urgent and priority one. Or do you think that the COP16 on biodiversity will be a barrage of ‘yuppies’ who will come to impose their colonial vision? Because her narrative sounds like this, minister,” the senator responded through her X account (formerly Twitter).
But the reply did not stop there, as the senator also maintained that there was segregation in the minister’s speech and went further, as she insinuated that her words do not represent the progressivism that the Government defends.
“But there is also segregation in your words. Aren’t those of us who care about those issues, which you seem to despise, part of “the people”? Oh Minister. “The people” are not made up of a scarf, a skin color, a region or a hateful social stratum. We are all the people. Even the animals, for whom there must also be a government. That would be progressivism! It is dangerous to govern from resentment, deepening differences, class struggles, creating enmities (the people versus others), disqualifying,” Padilla added.
Mojica extended the discussion by responding hours later both on social networks and on the microphones of a radio station.
Through her X account, the minister pointed out that the senator “manipulated my intervention, editing it, distorting a message that was not the one I gave, uninformed.” Additionally, she said this unleashed a “Tweet horde against me.”
“I insist that this discussion cannot be turned away from the black communities of the Pacific, and I invite anyone who wants to go to Buenaventura to contribute to the pact for sustainability. I reiterate that shark finning is prohibited,” Mojica added, leaving in her message her speech that, according to her, is not manipulated.
Already this Wednesday morning, the minister spoke on Blu Radio and supported her argument that the message was manipulated.
“It distorts my message and that is why I invite you to watch the full video because the debate that I raise and the narrative that I propose is that we must have sustainable development and reiterating shark fishing, shark hunting, shark finning is prohibited in Colombia,” he said on Blu Radio.
Likewise, she said that she did not use the terms “yuppie” and “gomelo” in a derogatory way, because she considers herself a person who can be described with those words.
“I am a yuppie because I am a privileged woman who was able to access education and that gives me a privileged situation, but I have not known what it is like to go to sleep without eating and I did not know what life was like in Buenaventura until I went. to see it. And really, to talk about this you have to go to Buenaventura to see it,” she concluded.
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