Al-Ahram Weekly On-line
17 - 23 September 1998
Issue No.395
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 Current issue | Previous issue | Site map
Pollution, greed and crime have brought the fishing industry to its knees. Fatemah Farag plies the Northern Coast, searching for hope in the face of adversity
No fish No more fish in the sea
How can a fishing town survive when there are no longer any fish to catch? It cannot. Armed gangs and unemployment mark the death-throes of Matariya

Casting about for a catch
There are fewer and fewer fish in the nets, and the small boats are being forced ever further out to sea in search of a livelihood. As for the fishermen, they have become entangled in a struggle for survival