Saturday, December 7, 2013

Mis-information malaises in the news for the BSC Philippines industry

Recently I got bugged with reports that the Philippines had finally approved and enacted the Implementing Rules and Regulations (aka Joint Administrative Order-JAO) for the Philippines BSC Management Plan. This was due to some misreports made by by infofish.org in as news update last 21 October 2013 and seafoodsource.com published on 14 July 2013. Both of these reports are FALSE. It is not true that the JAO is already enacted, as of this date (07 December 2013) it is still undergoing some review processes as mandated by Philippine laws.
My advise for both infofish and seafoodsource is to verify the veracity of whatever reports they received for the sake of truthful reporting and their audience. The authorities to check here are the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) only; please respect the proper authorities. Be aware that such misreports may just be tools by some groups to gain medial mileage, which is stinks with the sins of greenwashing/whitewashing.
The Philippines BSC Management Plan was approved by the National Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Council (NFARMC) on 17 September 2013 (full content is found in http://www.bfar.da.gov.ph). This was through the efforts of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, the agency tasked for the management and protection of the fisheries resources in the Philippines. The Management Plan serves as the national management framework for the Philippines’ blue swimming crab resources. The regulatory measures identified therein could only have legal function through the enactment of its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) through a Joint Administrative Order approved by both the Department of Agriculture and Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretaries. This is mandated by Philippines Law that such IRR’s should always undergo consultation processes with stakeholders. This is a protocol that everybody should observed – news of such is best sourced from the said agencies only.