9 February 2026
For Attention:
President Cyril Ramaphosa
Presidency of the Republic of South Africa
Minister Willie Aucamp
of the Department of Forestry Fisheries and Environment
Deputy Minister Bernice Swarts
Department of Forestry Fisheries and Environment
dmaseko@dffe.gov.za bswarts@parliament.gov.za
And Deputy Minister Narend Singh
Department of Forestry Fisheries and Environment
And Director of Small-scale Fisheries Management
Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE)
and Deputy Director-General of Small-scale Fisheries Management
Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE)
CC:
Portfolio Committee on Forestry, Fisheries and Environment
Select Committee on Agriculture, Land Reform and Mineral Resources
LETTER OF DEMAND: DFFE LINEFISH DECISION TO STARVE SMALL-SCALE FISHING COMMUNITIES
Dear President Ramaphosa, Minister Aucamp and the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment,
Last Monday (2 February), we were informed of your decision on the allocation of the 2026–2027 Traditional Linefish. That decision cuts our access to the sea as small-scale fisheries by slashing our vessel allocations from 565 boats to just 77 nationwide. We are shocked, angry, and deeply alarmed.
Let us be clear: this decision places our lives, livelihoods and our communities in immediate danger.
We are traditional fishers. After 1994, we have fought and continue to fight to have our sector recognised and protected. Under apartheid, we were criminalised, marginalised and forcibly removed from our resources that we live from. More than 30 years into democracy, after fighting for the Small-Scale Fisheries Policy and for recognition as rights holders, we are still being treated as if we do not matter.
We are overlooked. We are disrespected. We are disregarded.
In 2007, the Kenneth George court order gave us hope. It clearly instructed the Minister to develop and implement a framework that must accommodate the socio-economic rights of traditional and small-scale fishers and ensure equitable access to marine resources. In 2012, when the Small-Scale Fisheries Policy was gazetted and the roll-out of implementation began, we believed that historic injustices would finally be addressed.
This linefish decision proved otherwise.
It violates our constitutional rights to food, livelihood, culture and dignity. Traditional linefish is the backbone of our communities. Thousands of fishers, including women and youth, depend on this resource for survival. It feeds our families year-round. Cutting our TAE means fewer days at sea, no income for hundreds of households and our children going to bed hungry.
In cooperatives with over 100 members, how are we expected to decide who gets to go to sea with one boat and who must stay at home without work? This decision forces fishers to turn against one another, creates deep division within communities, and places an impossible burden on cooperatives. The damage this will cause, socially, economically and emotionally will be long-lasting and entirely avoidable.
Our boats carry generations of history across these waters, used by our great-grandmothers, and great-grandfathers long before these decisions. Why are you erasing our rights, our culture, and our way of life? Is it not your duty to protect them?
This decision directly undermines the purpose and promise of the Small-Scale Fisheries Policy. It is condemning the sector to death and extinction.
How is it acceptable in a country where we are facing rising food prices, deep poverty, climate disasters, and widespread hunger? We are seeing increasing malnutrition in our communities and your response is to take away our primary source of food.