Protesters from across Sri Lanka descended on the nation’s capital in February, shouting above the street noise and pumping their fists in the air in frustration.
The group was composed of fishermen and their supporters, and their rage was sparked by the Indian boats that regularly sail into Sri Lankan waters by the thousands, hauling away valuable sea cucumbers and prawns. Sri Lankan fishermen have said they have lost business, and some have lost their lives in confrontations with foreign crews.
The protesters demanded more action from the government, even as the Sri Lankan navy has used force to guard its fisheries
Around the world, from Sri Lanka to Argentina to the South China Sea, the ocean has become an expanding front in the armed conflict between nations over illegal fishing and overfishing, practices that deplete a vulnerable food source for billions of people worldwide.
An Associated Press review of conflict databases found in the past 5 years more than 360 instances of state authorities ramming or shooting at foreign fishing boats, sometimes leading to deaths.
Protesters from across Sri Lanka descended on the nation's capital in February, shouting above the street noise and pumping their fists in the air in frustration.
The group was made up of fishermen and their supporters, and their rage was sparked by the Indian boats that regularly sail into Sri L