When the Convention on Work in Fishing comes up for discussion in the 96^th Session of the International Labour Conference in Geneva in June 2007, the Central Trade Unions of Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka will vote for its adoption in order to support fishworkers across the globe. The decision to vote in favour of the Convention was unanimously taken by the CTUOs, organisations in support of small fisher people and the unorganised fish workers at a meeting held at Negombo, Sri Lanka, on 10-11 February 2007.

The participants of the meeting agreed that the proposed ILO Fishing Convention will significantly contribute to decent work and social security, in the marine fishing sector, of South Asian workers on domestic as well as foreign fishing vessels.

According to the participants, any international legal instrument that improves the work and living conditions of fishers, upholds their dignity, and gives them identity as workers, especially in the context of globalisation, should be welcomed. Since over 80 per cent of global fish production, fishing fleet and fishing workforce are from Asia, the participants called on the South Asian governments, trade unions and employers to demonstrate an issue-based unity in ensuring that the Convention is adopted at the International Labor Conference in June 2007. They emphasised the need for the South Asian governments entering into a proactive dialogue with the governments of Africa, Asia and Latin America in order to ensure that the Convention is adopted.

It was suggested that the proposed ILO Work in the Fishing Convention should be seen as a useful and practical guide. The proposed Work in Fishing Convention is to update and strengthen the existing ILO instruments — the last one was adopted in 1966 way before the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea — concerning minimum age, medical examination, articles of agreement, accommodation, competency certificates, vocational training and hours of work. ILO, for the first time, is proposing an international legal instrument that protects the interests of fishers on board small-scale fishing vessels and this is of immense benefit to the South Asian countries that have a large share of small-scale fishers of the world.

The participants further urged the tripartite constituents of the ILO to unanimously adopt the ILO Work in Fishing Convention when it comes up for consideration at the 96^th session of the International Labor Conference 2007.