“We are getting impatient, we will not give up”: in Grau-du-Roi, around fifty demonstrators against the ban on line fishing

Les pêcheurs ont marché jusqu’à la mairie pour défendre le droit de pêcher à la ligne. – Tom Serrano

Depuis un mois, la pêche à la ligne est interdite au Grau-du-Roi en raison de conflits avec les propriétaires de chalutiers.

A month after the decision to ban line fishing on the Grau-du-Roi channel, the anger among the main parties concerned has not subsided. This Thursday evening, under a stormy sky, there were about fifty of them parading between the statue of Hope and the town hall, regularly applauded along the way. “Banning fishing means cutting social ties. Every evening, we met up, we even talked to people we didn't know”, laments Michel Valette.

The ban is linked to conflicts with the owners of trawlers, whose propellers have been damaged by fishing line on several occasions. At the end of June, a boat was shot with a pellet gun and the investigation is still ongoing. Conflicts of use led to the strict decision, with a fine of 1,500 euros for offenders.

“We're not going to let go”

As they headed to the town hall, the fishermen knew they would not be received. But they did not give up and made proposals to coexist as peacefully as possible with the professionals. “We had an appointment with the municipality, they heard us. We are getting impatient. We will not give up, we will not abandon”, proclaim Sébastien Millet and Luc Barthelot, from the fishing collective that should soon transform into an association, in order to become a real interlocutor with the public authorities.

About fifty fishermen, of all ages, demonstrated.

Among the options, the fishermen propose a regulation, first “at the level of the timetables so as not to hinder the movement of trawlers”, explains Sébastien Millet. This concerns the times of entry and exit from the port, in the morning between 2 and 3 o'clock, in the afternoon between 3 and 6 o'clock. To show their good will, they also mention a single rod not anyone but all types of rods, the ban on lead fishing, only fishing with a float… The fishermen would also like to be informed of the ongoing investigation following the shootings, denying any involvement.

Beyond defending a leisure activity, the fishermen also intend to defend the identity of the village. Luc Barthelot was born in a fishing shop and was a fishing tackle retailer for a long time. He likes to point out that his father served famous customers who enjoyed fishing in Grau-du-Roi. “We see the date of 1879 on the town hall, the creation of Grau-du-Roi, recalls Viviane Dumas. At the time, the first people who came were anglers.”