Unveiled the Stories of the Fisherman’s Families: A Phenomenological Study

Illegal fishing is a common practice among Filipino fishermen and the families who are left behind were the ones to suffer the consequences of their actions. This study unveiled the stories of illegal fisherman’s families. The study was conducted in selected barangays in Ozamiz City, Misamis Occidental. There were eight immediate families of fishermen that were interviewed using a structured questionnaire made by the researcher. The study used Moustaka’s Transcendental Analysis of the data. The phenomenological study revealed the following four main themes such as worries and concerns of families, avoidance of illegal acts, financial instability, and pillar of the home. This research clearly speculates that the family of fishermen experience a wide variety of challenges related to their husband getting caught by Maritime Police. As a fisherman who got caught for illegal fishing, families could not help but worry and be concerned for their welfare. Avoid fishing illegally again as it can detriment the income, they have that could lead to a greater financial burden and instability. Families of fishermen may explore ways in which they can use to sustain their financial needs other than their husband’s income from fishing. They should also persuade their husband to stop doing illegal fishing and start being a law-abiding citizen to be able to continuously fish without the burden of guilt and fish peacefully.