Sri Lankan audiences often hear about how Indian fishing trawlers invade the northern Sri Lankan seas, depleting the local fishing harvest. Namrata Acharya spoke to Indian fishermen to find out what happens to them when they are arrested in the high seas by the Sri Lankan Navy.
Here are excerpts from an Al Jazeera news report:
When Ashoka* heard boots approaching, he began to shiver in fear. The 23-year-old was in the engine room of his boat when three Sri Lankan Navy (SLN) officers boarded the vessel. When Ashoka, an Indian fisherman from Pamban Island at the southernmost tip of India, came out on deck, he saw the officers beating and pushing the eight fishermen on his boat, using guns, iron rods, and wooden logs.
The ordeal lasted for an hour, with one of the officers shouting, “Beat them hard, harder,” recalls Ashoka, who was also beaten.
The fishermen—all Indians—were later handcuffed and chained, the steel edges cutting into their skin and causing intense itching. They were chained together and could not move; if they tried, they would all fall. The fishermen were taken to a navy camp in Karainagar, in northern Sri Lanka. Fifteen days later, two men—whom the fishermen would later learn were from the Indian embassy in Colombo—visited them, bringing towels and soap. They were finally released a month after their arrest.
This incident took place in 2019, when the fishermen were apprehended off Katchatheevu, an uninhabited island that falls under Sri Lanka’s territory, for fishing in that country’s waters. However, Ashoka’s experience has become more common in recent years, peaking in 2024, with a significant rise in the number of Indian fishermen being arrested by Sri Lanka. This comes amid mounting tensions and allegations of military mistreatment of fishermen in custody.
A record 535 Indian fishermen were arrested by Sri Lanka in 2024—nearly double the previous year—according to Indian government data. As of November 29, 141 Indian fishermen remained in Sri Lankan jails, and 198 trawlers were confiscated.
In September, five fishermen who had crossed into Sri Lankan waters returned to Pamban with tonsured heads after being arrested. According to the fishermen, they were treated like convicts and had to pay fines of 50,000 Sri Lankan rupees ($170) each to secure their release.
Protest in Tamilnadu
Protests erupted within the fishing community in Tamil Nadu, where Pamban is located, over frustrations that the Indian government has not been able to ensure their security. Meanwhile, in Sri Lanka, three other Indian fishermen were sentenced to six months in prison along with fines.
The Sri Lankan Navy (SLN) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have not responded to Al Jazeera’s requests for comment on the allegations of mistreatment of arrested fishermen. “I wish they would treat us like humans,” says Ashoka.
