The Coordinating Committee (CC) of the World Forum of Fisher Peoples (WFFP) has officially begun its meeting on Pari Island, Indonesia. Gathering on this frontline island of traditional fisher peoples, the CC strengthens the collective struggle for food sovereignty, climate justice, and the rights of fisher peoples worldwide.
Pari Island, part of the Kepulauan Seribu (Thousand Islands) near Jakarta, stands as a powerful symbol of the realities faced by coastal communities. Local fisher peoples live with rising seas, coastal erosion, land loss, and ongoing threats to their territories and livelihoods. The island has become a focal point of resistance against reclamation projects, environmental degradation, and the broader impacts of the climate crisis—issues that resonate deeply with WFFP’s global membership of more than 10 million small-scale fishers across dozens of countries.
From this living frontline, the Coordinating Committee advances the priorities set by the movement. The CC plays a central role in translating the resolutions and political direction of the General Assembly into concrete strategies, solidarity actions, and organisational strengthening. Discussions focus on defending customary rights over waters and coasts, opposing ocean and land grabbing, rejecting false “blue solutions,” and advancing people-centred alternatives rooted in aquaecology, food sovereignty, and community control.
The choice of Pari Island underscores WFFP’s commitment to standing with communities on the front lines. It affirms that the struggles of local fisher women, men, youth, and Indigenous peoples are inseparable from the global fight against the commodification of oceans and waters. The meeting builds on recent continental and international processes, reinforcing alliances and sharpening strategies for the years ahead.
WFFP reaffirms its foundational message: We are the oceans, we are the waters, we are the peoples. In solidarity with the people of Pari Island and all ocean, coastal, and inland fishing communities, the Coordinating Committee continues its work to defend territories, livelihoods, and futures grounded in justice and dignity.
Further updates from the meeting will be shared as the process advances.