29/05/2026
LOOK: Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (PAMALAKAYA-Pilipinas) successfully held its National Fisherfolk Summit on 15 Kilometers yesterday, May 28, at the University of the Philippines Institute for Small-Scale Industries (UP ISSI).
The summit was attended by fisherfolk members from various PAMALAKAYA chapters representing coastal communities across the Philippines, including those from Cebu, Panay, Negros, Bicol, Batangas, Cavite, Rizal, and Navotas.
The program opened with a national situationer delivered by Mong Palatino, Secretary General of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), which tackled pressing political issues at the national level.
This was followed by a presentation from Gabriela Women's Party Rep. Sarah Elago on House Bill 5606, or the Atin ang Kinse Bill, along with other legislative initiatives filed by Gabriela and the Makabayan bloc in Congress, including measures to protect coastal fishing communities from reclamation and displacement, and to declare Manila Bay a reclamation-free zone.
Fisherfolk leaders from different regions then shared updates on their local campaigns for the exclusive rights of small-scale fishers within the 15-kilometer municipal waters, as well as other pressing issues confronting their communities, such as reclamation, conversion, and militarization.
The program concluded with the reading of a Manifesto of Unity for the Exclusive Rights to the 15-Kilometer Municipal Waters, a collective declaration affirming the rights, livelihoods, and welfare of the country's small-scale fisherfolk.
