Online Travel Guides:Bowermaster’s Adventures — Political conflict in the Galapagos
Article Summary:
Street protests are not a common occurrence in Galapagos, but a recent decision by the Ecuadorian government to fight over fishing and illegal fishing
Article Content:
Filed under: Activism, Arts and Culture, History, Learning, Stories, South America, Ecuador, Video, Ecotourism, Consumer Activism
Street protests are not a common occurrence in Galapagos, but a recent decision by the Ecuadorian government to fight over fishing and illegal fishing by giving fishermen tourist permits - over other residents, who’ve been waiting patiently themselves, many for years - sent locals into the streets armed with pots for banging, loudly. Virtually everyone who’s moved to the Galapagos in recent years has come with hopes of participating in - getting rich off? - the booming tourism industry. With permits greatly reduced, the line of hopefuls is long. That the government is trying to buy off fishermen by letting them jump to the front of the line isn’t sitting well.
Near the front of the protest is a solitary gringo, a sixty-something man in a red polo shirt and khaki shorts, carrying a placard and a megaphone. Jack Nelson’s father came to the Galapagos in 1961, by a thirty-six-foot sailboat; he opened its first hotel. When the son came a few years later, hoping to avoid the U.S. draft and maybe adapt to island life, he never anticipated staying. He went on to become the Galapagos first tourist guide and is still here, watching the place he loves evolve. The hotel has been sold but he still co-owns a dive shop, so is actively interested in who’s getting new tourist permits … and who is not.
Bowermaster’s Galapagos — Chapter VII from gadling on Vimeo.
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Bowermaster’s Adventures — Political conflict in the Galapagos originally appeared on Gadling on Sun, 13 Dec 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Tags: activism, adventure travel, bowermaster, bowermastersadventures, conservation, darwin, galapagos, galapagos islands, GalapagosIslands, island, islands, jba, jon bowermaster, JonBowermaster