WA demersal fishing ban: Shark fisher John Higham stages rooftop protest against bans at fisheries office

A Geraldton fisher who chained himself to the roof of the local fisheries office — swallowing the key to the lock — has voluntarily ended his protest against the State Government’s controversial demersal fishing bans. John Higham climbed to the top of the two-storey building — the office of the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development — on Monday morning, chaining himself to it and unfurling a banner, which read: “Jackie Jarvis give back our shark licenses (sic) Let us go back to work.” Just before 4pm, Mr Higham voluntarily came down from the roof after fire crews arrived and passed up a pair of bolt cutters. Police had been at the scene since Monday morning and trained police negotiators were involved in resolving the stand-off. Mr Highham said police told him he could facing a trespass charge, but no charges had been laid as of late Monday afternoon. After venturing down, Mr Higham said he hoped he had got his “very desperate” message across in the hope these bans would be overturned so he could return to work. “I think I got my message across,” he said on why he decided to cut himself free and climb down. “It’s quite uncomfortable sitting up there, but it was definitely worth it. Can’t wait to go home and have a beer.” Earlier, Mr Higham confirmed he swallowed the key to the lock to demonstrate how serious he was. Mr Higham is a shark fisher who is not allowed to use his licence anymore for the potential risk of demersal by-catch. “We’re not getting listened to by the minister,” Mr Higham told the Geraldton Guardian from his rooftop protest earlier on Monday. “The minister hasn’t even spoken to any of the commercial fishermen ...basically we’re living off our savings now ... and my savings are getting very, very, very low. I’ve got mortgages and I’m going broke now.” At that stage, Mr Higham vowed to stay on the roof until his licence was reinstated and he was “able to go back to work”. He also demanded to speak with Fisheries Minister Jackie Jarvis on the phone. “Why stop me from catching shark when I get hardly any by-catch when there’s hundreds of cray boats, hundreds of amateur cray pots in the water, those cray pots they get by-catch ... why haven’t they been looked at?,” he said. “She’s (Ms Jarvis) the only one that’s got the power. I just want to go back to work, there’s hundreds and thousands of people that don’t even want to work. All I want to do is go to work ... so I can put food on the table ... and pay my mortgage. “They’re going to have to get a grinder to grind me out.” Mr Higham said he was grateful that he and the fishing community had attracted a lot of support. Motorists have been honking their horns as they drive past while others have asked Mr Higham if he has food and water. Mr Higham is responsible for another stunt in defiance of the bans — last month he chained his boat to the gate of the same building. At the time, he said: “If I can’t go to work, they shouldn’t be allowed to go to work.” After Monday’s protest was over, Mr Higham was asked if he would be planning a third protest and responded: “Never say never, see what happens.” A DPIRD spokesperson said they were aware of the incident and that WA Police were on site, but would be making no further comment at this stage. Last month after being offered a $2000 “act of grace payment”, Mr Higham said that amount will “last me probably a month if that — then I’ll have to sell my house”. Geraldton fisher Anthony Haygarth, who launched a petition calling for an inquiry into fisheries management which has attracted the most signatures in WA Upper House history, was at the scene of Mr Higham’s protest, saying he heard about it and wanted to check on Mr Higham’s welfare. Geraldton MLA and shadow fisheries minister Kirrilee Warr said this protest was another example that fishers across WA were at “breaking point”. “These decisions made by the State Government are having an effect locally, and I’m concerned about the mental health of the community,” she said. “Fishers have told me the compensation doesn’t go far enough, and protests like the one seen today show the impact it has on livelihoods. “I urge the Minister to listen to fishing families, our coastal communities, and the people of WA by coming to the table and working together to find a solution.” The bans against demersal fishing in the West Coast region, from Kalbarri to Augusta, came into effect on January 1. Commercial demersal fishing of species such as pink snapper and dhufish is permanently banned while recreational boat-based fishing is not allowed until spring 2027. The State Government has allocated $20 million for a compulsory buyback of commercial fishing licences.