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| " Territorial Regulation in the Small-Scale Fisheries of Itoman, Okinawa |
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Reference |
| Akimichi, Tomoya: " Territorial Regulation in the Small-Scale Fisheries of Itoman, Okinawa.", in Kenneth Ruddle and Tomoya Akimichi:" Maritime Institutions in the Western Pacific.", National Museum of Ethnology, Osaka, Japan, 1984. |
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Introduction to the Institution |
| The Ambushi fishermen are part of a larger fishing industry in Itoman. They use stake-nets, "ambushi's", for coastal fishery. Ambushi fishing is done in shallow water where tidal waters and corresponding fish movements must be taken into account. The net is composed of two main parts: A bag net which is set using poles fixed in a semi-rectangular shape at the side of coral rock, about three to four fathoms deep; and wing nets which are attached to each side of the bag net. The net is fixed with coral rocks at the bottom. Usually the wing nets are 50-100 m. long (See fig.3). Normally each fisherman works on his own with his small boat and netting gears, but sometimes they will use an assistant. Ambushi-fishermen generally belong to the same Munchu - indigenous descent groups in traditional Okinawan society - the Sumu-bara group. Contracts to conduct Ambushi fishery were first reported in the late 19th century. In the 1930'es, there were 7-8 Ambushi fishermen in Itoman. |
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Coverage of the Institution |
| The text does not refer to similar institutions outside Itoman, but Ambushi fishery is generally known in Japan, normally called Tateboshi-ami. The institution is concurrent. |
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Rules for Management
of the Institution |
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(a) Boundary Rules |
| SOCIAL BOUNDARIES: To undertake Ambushi fishing, one must obtain a permission by the local Fisheries Cooperative Association (FCA) The rules of the institution only applies for fishermen using the ambushi tech-nology within the coastal fishing territory of Itoman.
SPATIAL BOUNDARIES: The coastal waters of the fishing territory licensed to the Itoman FCA. |
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(b) Governance
rules |
| The Ambushi fishermen are members of the local FCA, which administrates, controls and execute formal rules and rights among all fishermen in Itoman. The Ambushi fishermen have set up their own rules on how to conduct Ambushi fishing. Earlier meetings in order to govern this institution were held among Ambushi fishermen once a year. Presumably these meetings started in the 1890'es. Post-war meeting frequency has been very low. |
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(c) Resource Allocation |
| Following rules have been set up by Ambushi fishermen for distributing fishing sites within the coastal fishing territory. The overall territory is divided into smaller subterritories, each consisting of 1 - 6 sites (fig.5.1.). Only one site within a subterritory can be used, except from certain large subterritories, where fishing from two sites can take place occasionally. The distribution of sites is based on the principle of first claim. This is done by marking the site with a pole the day before use. As the awareness of recovery cycles of fish at the sites is high, sites are not likely to be claimed continously by the same person. In case of netcrossing between subterritories the late comer will have to reduce his nets (fig. 5.5., 5.6.). Late comers can discuss the use of a site or a subterritory with the first claimant, but the first claimant has the right (fig. 5.7.). Furthermore, the use of certain subterritories can be prohibited if neighbouring subterritories have already been claimed or occupied. For certain subterritories a fisherman who wishes to use a neighbouring subterritory can ask for permission. This process is called "sodan" - to discuss. |
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Conflict Resolution Mechanism |
| Conflicts has occured between Ambushi fishermen and fishermen using fixed nets. Fixed nets were introduced in Itoman in the early 1970'es by fishermen from the neighbouring communities Yone and Kyan, who are members of the Itoman FCA. Both groups are working within the same territory, but they have no legal basis on which to regulate eachother. This is problematic as fishing grounds used for fixed nets are also suitable for Ambushi-fishery. A general meeting was held in the FCA in 1983, but the outcome was disadvantageous for the Ambushi fishermen. The maximum number of nets of both Ambushi- and fixed net fishermen was set at four, but as an Ambushi fisherman only has the capacity to handle three in a day, the fixed netters were given a comparative advantage. When the study was conducted it seemed that the conflict was ongoing. Eventhough Ambushi fishermen and fixed netters are members of the same FCA, they live in seperate communities. Fixed netters do not have the strong social bonds of the Ambushi fishermen and they originally came from villages outside Itoman, though they are members of the same FCA. |
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Problems Faced by Institution |
| Land reclamation (See "Change") and the introduction of fixed nets (See "Conflicts"). |
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Changes in the Institution over time |
| Since the 1960'es, large scale landreclamation have altered the coastal waters of Itoman enormously. This has meant a destruction of fishing grounds, drastically decreasing the number of fishing spots. This might lead to a decrease in the number of Ambushi fishermen, which again could lead to the disuse of the informal rules of territorial regulation. The overcrowding in the coastal waters induced by the introduction of fixed nets calls for alternative rules of regulation which includes both ambushi's and fixed netters. |
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Other Features of Institution |
| The study emphasizes that the strong social bonds among Ambushi fishermen, due to their membership of the same "Munchu", has helped in the creation of informal rules for territorial regulation. Another effect of the social bonds is, that knowledge of good fishing spots seems to be shared uniformly. |
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Purpose |
| Territorial Regulation in Coastal Fishery. |
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Country |
| Japan. |
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Region |
| Itoman, Okinawa island. |
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Date Of Publication |
| TroB180396 |
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