A complete wheel-jam strike was carried out on Tuesday in the coastal city of Gwadar, against illegal trawling.
Gwadar city was completely disconnected from other areas due to the strike. Business centers in the city remained closed and roads were deserted.
The strike was called by the National Party (NP). Protestors blocked the roads from Dhor to Kohe-Batil which disconnected Gwadar from other areas and affected daily life activities.
National Party leaders said that the strike and wheel jam protests are being carried out against illegal fishing in the waters.
According to reports from Gwadar, National Party workers suspended traffic on Marine Drive Road by burning tires. Shops and financial institutions remained closed entire day on NP’s call of shutter-down strike.
Attendance at government institutions was low due to the strike and people were facing difficulties.
Fishermen have also been protesting against illegal trawling in the coastal areas of Balochistan—alleging that Chinese trawling in Gwadar is on the verge of complete destruction of marine life.
Related: Fishermen protest over illegal trawling in Pasni
Trawling is the favoured method of commercial fishing companies as it can yield large numbers of fish in one go. It involved dragging heavy-weighted large nets along the seafloor. It is an environmentally destructive process as it is indiscriminate in what it catches. As the net is swept across the floor, everything that comes in its wake is trapped, including endangered species of aquatic life.