Bibliography: pages 220-234. / This thesis examines the historic right of the Kalk Bay fishermen to occupy the area and exploit the marine resources of False Bay. It attempts to provide the historical base absent from anthropological, and other, works which have focussed on the area. In recent years, the local handline fishing community has faced destruction by a complex web of political, social and economic forces. This work shows that these have simply been new challenges in a long line, albeit the most serious, faced by the fisherfolk of Kalk Bay. The study begins with an examination of human settlement, and the origins of fishing, in Kalk Bay to the late nineteenth century. This is followed by an analysis of the organisation of the local fishing industry at the close of that century. These two chapters provide the backdrop for discussion of the commercialization of the local fishing effort, between 1890 and 1913. The fourth chapter deals with the establishment of the modern fishing industry in Kalk Bay, from 1913 to 1939. The thesis concludes with a brief examination of the community to the 1980s. Major findings are that the local fishermen of today are the product of a cultural and economic tradition stretching back thousands of years. By the late nineteenth century, the rhythm of life in the area was being rapidly changed by its incorporation into the social and economic orbit of greater Cape Town. Over the main period covered by the thesis, the local fishermen, as a result of their race and class, occupied the weaker position in conflicts with local authorities, the state and capital. However, they were able to fight dependence upon a single buyer and growing pressures for their proletarianisation and managed to maintain their independence as petty-commodity producers. The independence of the fisherfolk was nevertheless maintained at the expense of increasingly depressed local markets for their fish. Since the Second World War, the escalating political, social and economic subordination of the fisherfolk has progressively threatened the existence of the handline fishing industry and the fishing community at Kalk Bay. However, should racial ideologies and commitment to monopoly capitalization of the industry be set aside by the state, the Kalk Bay fisherfolk could survive, albeit in altered and diminished circumstances.

Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA(DVS) / This thesis examines how recent South African government fisheries policies have affected the livelihoods and food security of small-scale fishers, using the Kalk Bay fishing community in Cape Town, South Africa, as a case study. Fish has for generations provided food security for the fishers of Kalk Bay and their families. This food security has been both through catching fish for direct consumption and selling fish for income. Fish is an excellent source of nutrition, supplying easily digestible protein, as well as vital macro and micro nutrients essential for development and growth, thereby providing nutritional security. In South Africa, the right to food has been identified by the South African government as a primary policy objective. The Constitution of South Africa also guarantees access to food for citizens of the country primarily through providing access to food sources and livelihoods. This mini-thesis argues that despite the stated objectives of the government, the development and implementation of policy in the fisheries sector has not supported the right to food. Research was conducted through in-depth interviews with government representatives, fishing activists and fishers with a direct interest in Kalk Bay, as well as a survey completed in the Kalk Bay fishing community. The findings were examined through a sustainable livelihoods perspective, with a focus on access rights as a necessity to access livelihoods. The results clearly indicate that households in Kalk Bay who have traditionally pursued livelihoods and food security through fishing are often no longer able to do so. Small-scale fishers were completely omitted from the Marine Living Resources Act of 1998. This has resulted in the removal of access rights to marine resources which has led to these traditional fishers no longer being able to access their historical livelihoods and provide food security. These fishers have experienced further disenfranchisement from policies that were promised to empower the citizens of South Africa at the beginning of the new democracy in South Africa. As a result of a loss of access to livelihoods, small-scale fishers in South Africa launched a class action against the government. This legal action was won by the fishers and a judgement was given that the government was to amend the Marine Living Resources Act (1998), and a fisheries policy ensuring the inclusion of small-scale fishers was to be written. This thesis also addresses the attitudes towards and challenges of the newly adopted “Policy for small-scale fisheries in South Africa” of the fishing community of Kalk Bay. The evidence suggests that although small-scale fishers are now included, there are still notable challenges that could derail its successful implementation. A key challenge is the uncertainty by any parties about the quantity and value of marine resources to be allocated to the small-scale sector. It is unclear how much, if any, of the allocation is coming from the large scale industrial sector. This could result in continued challenges to the small-scale sector in terms of being able to access livelihoods and maintain food security.