32 TN fishermen held in Qatar for trespassing

NAGERCOIL: The Qatar Coast Guard have arrested 32 fishermen from Kanyakumari and Ramanathapuram districts for reportedly trespassing into their waters, the South Asian Fishermen Fraternity Forum (SAFFF) has alleged.Fr Churchill, general secretary of the forum, told Express that 28 Kanyakumari fishermen and four from Ramanathapuram, who were working in Bahrain had set out to sea on June 2 on eight mechanised boats. But the Qatar Coast Guards detained them a day later for allegedly crossing their country’s borders.“An SAFFF representative working in Qatar conveyed this last Saturday morning and by evening, we confirmed the incident. The fishermen have been lodged at the Alko jail in Qatar. The Indian Embassy in Qatar, the external affairs ministry and the district administration has been told about the incident,” Fr Churchill said.Of the 28 Kanyakumari fishermen, details of only four — Kumar (29) from Colachel, Ubald (35) and Brigin (37) from Thoothoor and Glitus (40) from Poothuraihave — are known so far. Fifty-six fishermen from Kanyakumari and Ramanathapuram have been detained by the Qatar Coast Guard since last July for trespassing on their waters. Fifty of them have been released so far. One fishermen from Thiruvananthapuram, another from Ramanatha­puram and four from Kanyakumari are still languishing in Qatar prisons. District revenue officer S Prabakaran said the information of the arrest has been passed on to higher officials.