the community. This is supported by the statement of Respondent G “Adu kasi mostly ket
fisherfolks selling, catch crabs, agsigay” ( There‟s a lot of fisherfolks selling, catch grabs and
so on) and Respondent H “Marami ang mga fisherman---may mga babae nagbebenta ng isda”
( There‟s many fisherman ---- women fisherfolks who‟s selling fish). In addition is the
statement of Respondent I where she started “ Lahat ng nangangalap, merong mga
kababaihan, nagsangat ti bansaway, lambat kawayan, bundok” (Everyone is gathering, there
are women who catch crabs, fishnets bamboo) The respondents who did not answer can be
interpreted as not aware regarding on this matter. Therefore, the only recognized members in
their community based on are those who catch fish.
Role of the Women in the Fishing Community
Subsequently, in terms of the role of the women in the fishing community, almost all
(93%) of the women fisher folk interviewed said that there are women in the fishing community.
This indicates that they are aware about the women fisherfolks in their community and this
includes the small-scale fishing such as preparing the fish to dry, selling of fish in the market or
through house to house and sewing fish nets. Despite the high percentage of women fisher folks
who confirmed about their participation and role in the community, there are still very few (7%)
of the interviewed women who said that there were no women in the fishing community. Since
there are only few members of the organization of the SAMARA Fisher folk, the very few could
possibly be the uninformed or unaware ones in their community.
In addition, the role of women fisher folks differs from selling of fish, gathering of crabs
to fish processing such as Daing na Tuyo their materials vary from fishnet, bamboo, boat, nylon
and etc. This result can be linked to some of the interviewees answer, Respondent B said “Kasi
ma’am nung dumating yong bangka naming na pumalaot ako yong nagaasikaso, yong mga
isda, nagclasify ko ma’am, yong nilalagay sa icebox ma’am nilalagayan naming ng ice para
hindi kwan masira.” (Once our boat arrives from the middle of the sea, I „am the one who
classify the fishes and put them in the icebox. We put ice so it won‟t get spoiled)
Income of Women Fisher Folks
A great majority (73%) of the women fisher folks earns 0 to 500 Pesos daily. While many
(27%) of them earns up to 501 and up. This implies that the income of women fisherfolks varies
depending on the amount of fish being sold in the market. The income or revenue of women
fisher folk goes to their basic needs such as groceries, foods and allowances. This is an indication
that partly they are capable to provide the basic needs of their family however due to the
situation we have they are indeed struggling and there is in need to help them survive. In
connection to this is the statement of Respondent E, “Depende ma’am kung madaming huli
mayroong 100, 200, 250 o kaya naman minsan 500, dati nakaka 2000 sa isang araw ngayon
kakaunti nalang.” (It depends ma‟am, if there‟s a lot of fish that were catch, we can earn
100, 200, 250 or sometimes 500. Before I earn 2000 pesos in a day but now, only few.)
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