Fishing has provided a livelihood for Wang Shumao and his ancestors for generations. But besides being a fisherman, he is also concerned about marine ecology and sees protection of the South China Sea as his lifelong mission.
As the deputy head of Tanmen Maritime Militia Company, which was established in 1985, Wang has participated in a number of major national maritime tasks and worked for rights protection in the South China Sea over the past 36 years, making outstanding contributions to safeguarding China’s territorial waters sovereignty and maritime rights and interests.
Wang Shumao, standing on a boat, looking toward the South China Sea on January 11, 2019.
Iron Will
Wang was born into a fishing family in Tanmen Village, Hainan Province in December 1956. After leaving high school, he worked with his father in the South China Sea accumulating a wealth of marine knowledge and experience. Being a major shipping route, the South China Sea is an area in which frequent ship accidents occur. Having an affinity with the sea from an early age, Wang realized that the construction of islands and reefs, and the improvement of the infrastructure for shelter, search and rescue, as well as fishery services, would greatly improve the conditions for fishermen’s operations. More importantly, the infrastructure helps China to better fulfill its international responsibilities and obligations, such as maritime search and rescue, marine scientific research, and navigation safety, which has greatly increased the rescue rate after ship accidents.
Wang has actively participated in the construction of many islands and reefs in the Nansha Islands cluster. These islands have a hot climate, with temperatures often exceeding 40 degrees Celsius coupled with changeable weather. When encountering strong winds and waves, it is difficult for ships to sail, which makes it impossible to deliver supplies, thus delaying the construction process. Being familiar with local conditions, despite the ultraviolet intensity out at sea, Wang often drives a small fishing boat to and from his village and the Nansha Islands, transporting building materials and supplies for construction.
One day in January 1998, Wang and his militia company men encountered a Grade 9 gale while transporting materials. Facing waves more than four meters high, he calmly commanded the crew to anchor the wooden boat. After floating for four days and nights and battered by waves, they were able to escape death. “Even if I have to risk my life, I must complete the tasks assigned me by my country,” said Wang.
For more than three decades, Wang has led the militia men to participate in the construction of islands and reefs. They crewed fishing boats on more than 800 occasions, transporting more than 4 million tons of building materials and assisting in the construction of many islands and reefs, including Huayang Reef, Dongmen Reef, and Nanxun Reef. During the construction of Dongmen Reef, Wang’s father and son joined the construction team, and the three generations working together to build the Nansha Islands was a much-told tale in the area. “My father told me to protect our South China Sea, and I also pass this spirit on to my son. It is a kind of inheritance,” said Wang.
Road to Common Prosperity
As a CPC member, Wang has always been conscious of “serving the people.” Over the years, he has taken the initiative to help villagers in difficult families, and shared his sailing experience and expertise with other fishermen, so that they could improve their livelihoods.
With government support in 2014, Wang bought a 350-ton steel ship on credit and became one of the first shipowners in Tanmen to have a new large-tonnage steel fishing vessel. He helped locals to build bigger ships and transform Tanmen from a dilapidated fishing village crowded with small fishing boats into a modern fishing port full of large-tonnage, hi-tech fishing vessels.
“Our old wooden fishing boats were at most 100 tons, which was remarkable at that time. In recent years, fishermen’s marine life has changed drastically,” said Wang. “Our country attaches great importance to the South China Sea fisheries and built 800-ton steel ships, which are equipped with a navigation system with accurate positioning. Besides, we can watch dozens of TV channels on board,” he said.
With the increasing awareness of ecological protection in recent years, Wang, now the Party branch secretary of Tanmen Village and chairman of the villagers committee, has a new mission: leading fishermen to drive development.
According to Wang, fishery resources are limited. Sea benefits nowadays are gradually declining and competition is increasingly intensive. “We can no longer blindly expand the scale of fishing. Instead, we must adapt to the characteristics of urban and rural residents’ consumption upgrades and develop recreational fisheries,” said Wang.
In November 2017, the first recreational fishery pilot project in Hainan Province landed in Tanmen. In response to the call, Wang decisively took the lead in renting out two of his fishing boats, and also encouraged other fishermen to participate in the development of recreational fisheries.
Fu Minglin, who once worked with Wang at sea, always wanted to take advantage of tourism development to open a homestay, but he knew nothing about tourism and turned to Wang for help.
Encouraged by Wang, Fu and three friends invested in the construction of a seascape homestay in late 2018. Fishing nets and shells dotted the eaves, and the tables and chairs were also made from old boat wood, creating a full fisherman environment. Today, the homestay has more than 20 local employees.
Tanmen now has five recreational fishery cooperatives with about 400 fishermen, focusing on the development of tertiary industries such as sea fishing and homestays. It has become a popular tourist destination to experience South China Sea fishery culture.
Local fishermen now lead a prosperous life. However, Wang still likes to keep busy on board. “My root is on the ship, and the anchor is the motherland behind me,” he said. Wang strives to continue developing the South China Sea for better lives of the villagers. His dedication led to the awarding of the July 1st Medal for model CPC members, which was conferred on him by Chinese President Xi Jinping on June 29, 2021.
