More than one hundred and sixty boat operators at the Malindi Marine National Park and Reserve at the Kenyan coast have resumed operations after a twelve-day strike. The operators downed their tools on 18th December and demanded the transfer of the Malindi Marine Park Senior Warden.
The truce follows intense negotiotions between the boat operators and the park’s management, brokered by the Assistant Director of the Kenya Wildlife Service at the coast, Arthur Todor.
The boat operators were protesting what they term draconian new rules put in place by the authorities without consulting them. These include a daily levy of three hundred shillings on boats anchored offshore and a lack of access to the park for operators with motorbikes.
The announcement by the Malindi Boat Operators Association comes as a relief to holidaymakers visiting Malindi. During the strike, tourists were unable to go on marine excursions, given the lack of means of transportation and operators.
