By Dara LewisPhotographs by Dara Lewis

Aaron Ndumiso wipes sweat off his brow as he baits his fishing rod with freshly caught conch. He was born and raised in the village of Hobeni, one of several communities surrounding the Dwesa - Cwebe nature reserve on the coast of the Eastern Cape. Ndumiso, like many other fishermen in the surrounding communities have had their livelihoods threatened after the region was declared a Marine Protected Area (MPA) in 2000. Although in 1989, the MPA was initially declared as a marine reserve under the Transkei Government, eleven years later it was re-confirmed as a strictly no-take zone in terms of the Marine Living Resource Act. Members of the community who heavily rely on the ocean as a source of income have fought this decision for 14 years. Some, like Ndumiso ignore the prohibition and continue to fish; facing the risk of being arrested. "I was born in this community, I live here, my family lives here, this is how I make money", says Ndumiso with a mix of passion and exhaustion. "They say it is illegal for me to be here, but it's the communities, this ocean belongs to me...it is ours".

Chief Directorate of The Department of Environmental Affairs: Oceans and Coast, Dr. Alan Boyd, thinks otherwise. In an interview with a local newspaper, Dr. Boyd maintained that the prohibition of the Dwesa - Cwebe nature reserve is necessary. "Both line fish and some inter-tidal organisms are depleted along much of the coast and the purpose of the MPA is to protect the few existing 'pristine' areas for conservation as well as maintain healthy populations [fish] which can help renew populations outside the MPA". The Department of Environmental Affairs: Oceans and Coast met with the surrounding communities to explain their stance

and propose a possible compromise which entailed very limited local access to line fish but only if a permit is obtained from the municipality in Elliotdale 50 km from Dwesa - Cwebe. Ndumiso"We are just trying to survive, that is all." agrees that the area should be protected, but not from community members whose livelihood depend on it. "The tourist take more shells and fish than us. We only take what we need. We are just trying to survive, that is all". Grant Miller, owner of the Haven Hotel, located on the reserve stands in agreement with this philosophy. Miller took over the hotel in 2005 and has been campaigning avidly for the community fishermen since.

Ndumiso shares that although he fishes here illegally, the Haven hotel is his most lucrative customer. "The hotel supports me, they let us fish here. I am very grateful for that. If the hotel stopped buying from me, I don't know what I would do." A couple days ago Ndumiso went to a meeting held by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries."I won't lose hope." "For 5 years now the department has been meeting with us, they make many promises. They say they will open the water to us, make it legal for us, but nothing happens". When I asked Ndumiso, if he has lost hope, he tilted his head took a deep breathe and said, "I'm not quite sure if it will ever be legal for us but I will attend every meeting. I won't lose hope".