Pomorskie/ Protest of recreational fishermen in Władysławów – blocked road to Hel

The demonstrators announced that their protest will last until 16. Only privileged service cars, such as ambulances, police cars, fire brigade vehicles and cars that young children travel, are to be allowed.

The blockade in Władysławów means no entry and exit from the Hel Peninsula, as there are no other routes that would be possible to tour.

This is the third demonstration on the land of fishing vessels. Three weeks ago they blocked the entrances to Leba and Ustka, and two weeks ago road 216 in Władysławów. During those protestThese fishermen passed through the pedestrian crossing and passed the waiting vehicles every few minutes.

"In view of the tragic situation of recreational fishermen, we decided to resume the action protestof course. To date, the signed agreement with then Minister of Maritime Economy Marek Gróbarczyk (signed 16 January 2020 – PAP) was not implemented. In all Polish ports there are ships that will no longer return to the profession. Sea wind farms in the Baltic are taking away our only fisheries and the ban on cod will be extended. Shipowners have decided to block coastal towns from the mainland, let this drastic form draw the attention of the government" - said the Emergency Staff of Fishermen in a message sent to the media.

In May, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and IWT reported that due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated high spending, there is no possibility of increasing aid to the struggling recreational shipowners who have fished cod. During the meeting, representatives of the Ministry confirmed that 20 million PLN will be allocated to aid to shipowners, which means about 200 thousand PLN of support for each shipowner.

Protestrecreational fisherman Waldemar Giżanowski from the Port of Kołobrzeg told PAP that the amount proposed by the ministry is for small and compensation to the industry fishermen recreational should amount to PLN 70 million.

The Parliamentary Committee on Maritime Affairs and Inland Shipping adopted a dissiderate on Friday describing the problems of recreational fishing and calling on the government to enter into dialogue.

A day earlier, representatives of the Emergency Staff of Fishery Shipowners presented their demands at the committee's parliamentary meeting.

As Andrzej Banaszczyk of the Staff of Emergency Recreational Fisheries said during the session of the committee that the government "broke all the arrangements for an agreement concluded on 16 January 2020." "Now the Polish government has left us separated from any ministry. We are not assigned to the Ministry of Infrastructure or to fisheries (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development – PAP). These ministries send our writings among themselves, showing that we are not belonging to one or the other," he said.

On the other hand, the Director of the Department of Maritime Economy of the Ministry of Infrastructure Mariola Chojnacka stressed that representatives of the Department of Fisheries of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Inland Shipping (released in October 2020) "have repeatedly met with owners, shipowners of commercial yachts. This made it possible to estimate the losses they suffered due to the restrictions introduced in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic".

She added that the support could amount to a maximum of PLN 200 000 per boat, and the aid was of an intervention nature "with the aim of supporting entrepreneurs who could not continue operations following the occurrence of COVID-19".

Chojnacka informed that 107 cases were examined, of which 58 applications met the conditions for granting support for a total amount of PLN 14 million. The financial support ranged from PLN 200 to 600 thousand per applicant.

Written by Robert Pietrzak/PAP