An open letter to federal
Fisheries minister Gail Shea:
Dear minister,
Whilst I’m not a Canadian nor a Canadian citizen and probably have no right to comment on your laws, I feel very strongly about what is happening with the halibut fishing.
It appears to me that once again big business is trying to run the country and in the long run it is the small businesses and the small communities that suffer.
I think it is unfair that the majority of people have to suffer so that a minority can make huge amounts of money. I know it is the same all over the world, but you have the power to make it different.
I have been coming to your beautiful country now for several years and love it. I have fished all around Vancouver, central BC, Terrace , Kitimat and will be in Terrace once again in 2011.
When we fish up there we always spend two or three days in Kitimat and next season will be no exception. That was until we heard about the possible closure of the halibut season.
There will be five of us fishing in September and halibut fishing is the reason for going to Kitimat. If there is a short season then there is no reason to travel to Kitimat.
I hear you say “ so what”, but think of it this way: five nights in a motel, five breakfasts, five lunches, five dinners, five people hiring a guide, a bit of shopping and a hire car, that is money that won’t be coming into the community.
If we feel this way, how many others are like us? Ten, 100, 1,000?
And this will happen in all small communities around BC. The tourist dollar is what helps these small towns survive and there must be millions and millions of dollars bought in each year by people like us.
These communities are no different than other towns worldwide , they are struggling in these difficult times - so why make it harder for them?
The money and the good will these communities bring to your great nation are immeasurable.
Minister, if you have taken the time to read this, then I thank you - and hope in the end you will see reason.
The smaller towns need all the help they can get and this is something that you can do at little or no cost to the government.
Yours sincerely,
Graeme Ivamy,
Mornington,
Wellington 602,
New Zealand.