This material was forwarded by Peter Rauch, who is trying to follow the
situation in the Galapagos. Mostly, we're not learning much about what is
going on down there, but we are at least getting a diversity of opinions
about it. Calls for boycotts as well as letters have generated some
responses by Ecuadorians that should be considered by anyone concerned with
the sea cucumber fishery and other environmental threats to the Galapagos.

This shows the value of the Internet more than almost anything else it is
used for: rapid international communication. Too bad we don't have a
world language. Too bad the leaders of each country can't chat by Internet
once a week to ask "how's it going; anything we can do to facilitate a good
relationship between us?"

>From: gmorejon at FISS.ORG.EC (Gustavo Morejon J.)
>Newsgroups: bionet.biology.tropical
>Subject: Re: Stop bashing Ecuador
>Date: 14 Feb 1995 13:02:22 -0800
>
>Dear Miguel Villegas and readers,
>
>>I do not know if the Ecuadorian officials where dealing with some kind
>>of association of fishermen there.
>
>Yes, they are well organized, as well as the people in the town, the
>people involved with the tourism agencies, etc. Each one of this
>asociations have a different way to see it. Turism people do not want
>to see lots of fishermen fishing sea cucumbers. People in town say,
>"If there is a new industry, more people is going to come here and
>there are no enough resources for them", etc., etc. The fishermen
>asociation went to Guayaquil to talk with the government and, here come
>the sad thing, it seems that politicians are taking its part in the
>problem. But, there was an arrangement, and fishermen did not respond
>positively. Maybe the plan was not taking into account some
>"realities".
>
>>When you talk about *fishermen not capable of cooperating*, you
>>are missing one important point. It is their land. They live there.
>
>One of the main problems at the Galapagos Islands is that every year
>new people arrive to "become natives". There were *not* native people
>on the Island. All of the people inside the Island are "colonos" and
>each year new people arrive. First, they came because of the turism
>industry, then for fisheries (Shrimps, lobsters, Sharks, etc), now, for
>sea cucumbers. The ecuadorian experience is that everytime that you
>make an arrangement with fishermen, you have to expect that they are
>not going to acomplish with all of the requirements of a new agreement.
>
>>The real origin of the problem in Galapagos is the demand of sea
>>cucumber not in Galapagos, but somewhere else.
>
>This is the real place where the battle must be fighted. It's easy to
>say don't destroy tropical forests, don't destroy magroves, but, how
>can we do it if there is:
>
>
>1) An economic preasure caused by the external debt pushing the
>government to use as much resources as it can use, affecting directly
>its politics regarding natural resources management.
>
>2) The poorest people in Ecuador works on the country side, if they
>have a work. Ecuador ocupy 68% of the total export of shrimps
>worldwide, which is an incentive to the creation of new shrimp
>industries inside the country causing the destruction of most of the
>mangroves. Another portion of the people depends on agriculture,
>specially banano, cacao and cafe. Another important section of the
>production inside the country are fisheries. Lots of people depend on
>this productive areas for not to be poor and feed their families. So
>they have to work on it.
>
>3) Then, if there is a market, there is a producer! But, if there is
>not a market, there must be poor people inside the country. Just as an
>example, look at the deep problems caused by the European Economic
>Comunity when they decided not to buy banano to Ecuador. Virtually
>thousands of families were lead to poverty so fast. Lots of people
>went to the cities causing social conflicts, and another portion saw
>the rainforests as a way to produce food, causing new deforestation
>sections in Amazonia and the last remnants of virgin rainforests.
>Yes! The EEC, indirectly caused social and evironmental problems, not
>just to Ecuador but to the rest of countries involved.
>
>>In my view, the real *tragedy* is how the differences in access to
>>education, health care, food, sanitation, etc, are growing between
>>developed and under-developed countries, how we are failing to even
>>consider this as a problem, and how difficult is becoming for each one
>>of us to understand the other.
>
>100% true.
>
> *----------------------------------*
> | Gustavo F. Morejon J.
> | General Coordinator
> | BioBanco Project
> | International Federation of Scientific Societies
> | P.O. Box 01.01.1135
> | http://fiss.org.ec
> | E-mail : gmorejon at fiss.org.ec (Internet)
> | Cuenca - Ecuador
> | South America
> *----------------------------------*
> | ...A spice called Biodiversity...
> *----------------------------------*

Dennis Paulson, Director phone: (206) 756-3798
Slater Museum of Natural History fax: (206) 756-3352
University of Puget Sound e-mail: dpaulson at ups.edu
Tacoma, WA 98416