Myanmar: Myanmar’s ‘Sea Gypsies’ Threatened by Dynamite Fishing and Drugs

Jul 3, 2017 | Agence France-Presse
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Until recently the sea provided the Moken with everything they needed: a base for boats they lived in, fish and seafood to eat and bounty such as pearls to trade with islanders for fuel and rice. But the waters have been devastated by the commercial fishing industry that has eaten away the area’s once abundant marine life. The destruction has been wrought by fishing boats, many believed to be from neighbouring Thailand, which use dynamite and trawlers to sweep the seabed. In a cruel chain reaction, some Moken youths have ended up working for the fishing fleets that are destroying the ecosystem that supported them through the generations.