0:00:07 > 0:00:09The Indian Ocean.
0:00:09 > 0:00:12Home to the world's most exotic islands
0:00:12 > 0:00:16and beautiful and rare wildlife.
0:00:19 > 0:00:23I'm travelling through 16 countries around the edge of this vast ocean
0:00:23 > 0:00:27that stretches 6,000 miles from Africa to Australia.
0:00:29 > 0:00:34Steeped in history, the Indian Ocean is vital to world trade.
0:00:36 > 0:00:40It's a journey of extremes, from stunning islands,
0:00:40 > 0:00:43across pirate-infested seas,
0:00:43 > 0:00:47to remote villages.
0:00:48 > 0:00:50GUNFIRE
0:00:50 > 0:00:52And war-torn lands.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54What was that?
0:01:05 > 0:01:08This is a journey about much more than just what's under the waves.
0:01:09 > 0:01:15It's about the lives of the millions of people who live around this,
0:01:15 > 0:01:17one of our greatest oceans.
0:01:20 > 0:01:24This part of my journey will take me across the island of Sri Lanka
0:01:24 > 0:01:27to India's east coast and on to Bangladesh.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35I'll be finding out what our love of prawns is doing to our oceans.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38I'm absolutely amazed by how few fish there are.
0:01:39 > 0:01:43I'll be helping Indian villagers who are fighting to save our seas.
0:01:43 > 0:01:46I don't think it's good to be the tallest person!
0:01:49 > 0:01:53And in Bangladesh, I'll see the graveyard where ships go to die.
0:01:54 > 0:01:56Giant ships,
0:01:56 > 0:02:00with great huge chunks ripped off them.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17I've only got a few more countries to visit on my journey,
0:02:17 > 0:02:20but I've still got huge distances to travel,
0:02:20 > 0:02:25and I'm starting this bit of my trip here on a beach on the island
0:02:25 > 0:02:27they call "the Pearl of the Indian Ocean".
0:02:29 > 0:02:34Sri Lanka is just half the size of England, but for centuries,
0:02:34 > 0:02:36since before the time of Marco Polo, it's attracted
0:02:36 > 0:02:39Indian Ocean travellers.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46With my guide, Delon Weerasinghe, I've travelled to Galle,
0:02:46 > 0:02:49formerly Sri Lanka's main port, and historically
0:02:49 > 0:02:53the first point of entry for merchants who came here to trade.
0:02:55 > 0:02:58There was one thing in particular that attracted
0:02:58 > 0:03:02a lot of the travellers who came to Sri Lanka,
0:03:02 > 0:03:05and Delon's taking me to see if we can buy some.
0:03:05 > 0:03:06Look at this!
0:03:06 > 0:03:08So that's cinnamon.
0:03:08 > 0:03:10So this,
0:03:10 > 0:03:13this is what drew travellers here from across the Indian Ocean?
0:03:13 > 0:03:16And that's why it was, Sri Lanka was so prized
0:03:16 > 0:03:20for the colonial powers came and, you know, took over Sri Lanka,
0:03:20 > 0:03:23because this was the only place you could get this particular spice.
0:03:23 > 0:03:26Cos the spice trade was so lucrative,
0:03:26 > 0:03:27they could make so much money from it?
0:03:27 > 0:03:29Absolutely, absolutely.
0:03:29 > 0:03:31Even now, 80% of the world's cinnamon
0:03:31 > 0:03:32actually comes from Sri Lanka.
0:03:32 > 0:03:36- So this is the best stuff?- This is. - From the place that it comes from?
0:03:36 > 0:03:37Yeah.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40'500 years ago, the spice trade drove European exploration
0:03:40 > 0:03:41'of the Indian Ocean.
0:03:41 > 0:03:45'The Portuguese, the Dutch and the British all colonised Sri Lanka
0:03:45 > 0:03:47'and fought wars to control the spice trade.'
0:03:47 > 0:03:51The best sticks are the ones that are most tightly packed,
0:03:51 > 0:03:53- so this is actually... - I knew you would know!
0:03:53 > 0:03:57This is, this is kind of the bark but it's actually packed with little shavings of bark strippings
0:03:57 > 0:04:01- that they take from the cinnamon as they peel it.- Right.
0:04:01 > 0:04:04And that's what actually makes Sri Lankan cinnamon quite unique,
0:04:04 > 0:04:06when you look at it.
0:04:06 > 0:04:10I'll just have just two sticks, let's put that one back.
0:04:10 > 0:04:13We take spices for granted now, but just imagine
0:04:13 > 0:04:16how it would have transformed the bland European diet.
0:04:17 > 0:04:19Mmm, I'm looking forward to this.
0:04:19 > 0:04:22I'll grind it up, and put it on my porridge.
0:04:22 > 0:04:26Today, of course, you don't have to travel to Sri Lanka to get cinnamon,
0:04:26 > 0:04:30but the country's still attracting the attention of foreign powers.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34We're going to get a train around the coast, and guess what?
0:04:34 > 0:04:36We're late!
0:04:39 > 0:04:41Here we go, is that a...?
0:04:41 > 0:04:43- This one looks all right, yeah. - Here we go.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46- Yeah, this one? - Let's get in this one, yeah.
0:04:46 > 0:04:47- This way?- Through here.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50'Sri Lanka's railways were originally built by the British
0:04:50 > 0:04:52'to transport tea.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56'The country became independent from Britain in 1948.'
0:05:04 > 0:05:06TRAIN WHISTLE BLARES
0:05:06 > 0:05:07He likes using the old whistle, eh?
0:05:07 > 0:05:09People like to walk along the train track,
0:05:09 > 0:05:12so this is one way of letting them know the train is coming.
0:05:12 > 0:05:13WHISTLE BLARES
0:05:19 > 0:05:22Today, there's a new superpower showing an interest in Sri Lanka.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27We headed along the island's southern coast
0:05:27 > 0:05:29to a new port called Hambantota.
0:05:32 > 0:05:34Oh, I'm lacking a platform.
0:05:37 > 0:05:38- All right?- Yeah.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46So, just over the horizon there is one of the most important
0:05:46 > 0:05:48shipping lanes in the Indian Ocean,
0:05:48 > 0:05:53one of the big east-west lanes that takes tens of thousands of ships
0:05:53 > 0:05:58across the sea every year, including something like 4,500 oil tankers.
0:05:59 > 0:06:01Much of the crucial oil is heading for China,
0:06:01 > 0:06:03along Indian Ocean shipping lanes
0:06:03 > 0:06:07that carry vast quantities of world trade.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10Their proximity to Sri Lanka makes the island strategically vital.
0:06:11 > 0:06:14China is flexing its muscles in the Indian Ocean,
0:06:14 > 0:06:18and, controversially, it's financing an enormous new port here
0:06:18 > 0:06:19that may one day host Chinese naval ships.
0:06:22 > 0:06:24I think standing up here you really do get a sense
0:06:24 > 0:06:27of the scale of the project, of the ambition of it,
0:06:27 > 0:06:30because the ship over there, a couple of miles away,
0:06:30 > 0:06:34that's near the entrance to the harbour, and the plan is for
0:06:34 > 0:06:39the harbour to extend almost all the way up to where we're standing now.
0:06:39 > 0:06:43We're talking about something that's the size of a town,
0:06:43 > 0:06:47that is going to be carved out of southern Sri Lanka.
0:06:47 > 0:06:51And if all goes to plan, this will become not just one of
0:06:51 > 0:06:54the largest ports in South Asia,
0:06:54 > 0:06:56but one of the largest in the whole world.
0:06:56 > 0:07:00This is just one of a series of vast port projects around
0:07:00 > 0:07:05the Indian Ocean that mark a major Chinese expansion into the region.
0:07:06 > 0:07:08Chinese investment has contributed to Sri Lanka
0:07:08 > 0:07:13having one of the fastest growing economies in Asia in recent years.
0:07:14 > 0:07:16But the boom here comes at a price.
0:07:22 > 0:07:24Sri Lanka is home to a unique type of elephant.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27There's only a few thousand left and they're now endangered.
0:07:27 > 0:07:31Across the island, the elephants' habitat is being taken over
0:07:31 > 0:07:35by people who want to use land for industry or farming.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40It's an issue affecting wildlife around the Indian Ocean.
0:07:40 > 0:07:42I went to visit the elephant transit home, which looks after
0:07:42 > 0:07:46elephants orphaned or injured by humans.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:07:53 > 0:07:55That is a demanding toddler!
0:07:59 > 0:08:01I arrive just in time for lunch.
0:08:01 > 0:08:04Here comes another one racing in for food!
0:08:04 > 0:08:07There are several dozen elephants here, and even a youngster
0:08:07 > 0:08:10can drink more than 40 pints of milk a day.
0:08:10 > 0:08:12ELEPHANT TRUMPETS
0:08:14 > 0:08:19'Deepani Jayantha, from the UK charity the Born Free Foundation,
0:08:19 > 0:08:21'took me to see a new arrival.'
0:08:23 > 0:08:25Hello.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27Oh, this is Namal.
0:08:27 > 0:08:28Look at its back leg.
0:08:28 > 0:08:30So, found trapped.
0:08:30 > 0:08:32- Trapped?- Yeah.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34He was caught in, literally in a trap or a snare,
0:08:34 > 0:08:37- something like that? - A snare, yes, yeah.
0:08:37 > 0:08:40- Usually these snares are set for the bush meat.- Right.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43And it's sad that little elephants get trapped.
0:08:44 > 0:08:48So, people will try and set little traps to catch,
0:08:48 > 0:08:51- I don't know, small deer or something...- Yeah.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54- ..to put food on the table. - Yeah, wild boar.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56But in this case, look what's happened to this little ellie.
0:08:56 > 0:09:00That is the cost of the human-elephant conflict here, unfortunately.
0:09:00 > 0:09:04'As the human population around the Indian Ocean rises dramatically,
0:09:04 > 0:09:06'wildlife numbers are plummeting.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09'200 elephants are killed in Sri Lanka every year by humans,
0:09:09 > 0:09:12'but this project treats elephants
0:09:12 > 0:09:14'and returns them to a protected area.'
0:09:14 > 0:09:15ELEPHANT PURRS
0:09:15 > 0:09:17Now, what was that noise?
0:09:17 > 0:09:19I think he likes the company.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22He knows that he's got attention,
0:09:22 > 0:09:27so I think that's communication, saying hello.
0:09:27 > 0:09:29Yeah.
0:09:29 > 0:09:31ELEPHANT PURRS
0:09:31 > 0:09:34SHE PURRS
0:09:37 > 0:09:39ELEPHANT PURRS
0:09:39 > 0:09:41You're talking with him, does that work?
0:09:41 > 0:09:43Sometimes!
0:09:47 > 0:09:49SHE PURRS
0:09:49 > 0:09:53I'm not even sure where that's coming from, rrrrr, rrrrr!
0:09:53 > 0:09:54It doesn't sound quite the same.
0:09:54 > 0:09:58I'm going to try my own version in my own dialect, OK?
0:09:58 > 0:10:00Rrrrrrrrrr.
0:10:00 > 0:10:01Go more guttural.
0:10:01 > 0:10:06Rrrrrrrrr, Namal!
0:10:06 > 0:10:09I think a chocolate biscuit might work rather better. Namal!
0:10:11 > 0:10:13Despite Namal's injury,
0:10:13 > 0:10:16the hope is that one day, like all the elephants here,
0:10:16 > 0:10:21he'll be well enough to be released back into a national park.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23ENGINE STARTS
0:10:26 > 0:10:30Until recently, Sri Lanka was gripped by a savage civil war.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33The conflict was particularly severe in the far north of the island,
0:10:33 > 0:10:36which has been off limits to foreign visitors for years,
0:10:36 > 0:10:38and is still difficult to reach.
0:10:38 > 0:10:40I headed to the city of Jaffna.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47The civil war was fought between the Sri Lankan government
0:10:47 > 0:10:50and militant group known as the Tamil Tigers,
0:10:50 > 0:10:53who wanted the creation of a separate state
0:10:53 > 0:10:55in the north and east of Sri Lanka.
0:11:00 > 0:11:05We've arrived, it's late, it's dark, so we're going to head to a hotel
0:11:05 > 0:11:09and then, tomorrow, we'll have a look around the north.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28The weather is, it's very disappointing.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31Yeah, if only we could have English weather!
0:11:31 > 0:11:33- Oi!- Sorry about that!
0:11:33 > 0:11:36Less of that, less of that!
0:11:36 > 0:11:39If we had English weather, we'd just have a nice, light drizzle.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42We can't let a bit of rain stop us, we need to see Jaffna.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47Most people in Jaffna are Tamils, who are mainly Hindus.
0:11:47 > 0:11:51They form around 10% of the population of Sri Lanka
0:11:51 > 0:11:53and have endured decades of discrimination
0:11:53 > 0:11:57at the hands of the majority Buddhist Sinhalese population.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04Increasing tensions between the two groups led to riots
0:12:04 > 0:12:07and the outbreak of civil war in 1983.
0:12:08 > 0:12:12During the conflict, both the Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan government
0:12:12 > 0:12:15committed appalling atrocities.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18The war claimed up to 100,000 lives,
0:12:18 > 0:12:23and ended with the violent defeat of the Tamil Tigers in 2009.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27Look at what has happened to the buildings.
0:12:27 > 0:12:31They're just covered in dozens of bullet holes.
0:12:31 > 0:12:32Pockmarked.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35The roof on most of this is completely gone.
0:12:35 > 0:12:38'Even schools in villages around Jaffna were bombed.
0:12:38 > 0:12:41'Locals here are still living amid ruins.
0:12:41 > 0:12:46'Ameneka from Save The Children took me to a makeshift school.'
0:12:46 > 0:12:48Oh, look at where they're studying at the moment!
0:12:48 > 0:12:50Good morning!
0:12:52 > 0:12:54Good morning, sir!
0:12:54 > 0:12:57Good morning! Vanakkam!
0:12:58 > 0:13:01A cuter sight it would be hard to find on Planet Earth!
0:13:03 > 0:13:05'But the curriculum here is dominated by the legacy of
0:13:05 > 0:13:09'the island's violent recent history.'
0:13:13 > 0:13:17I joined the children for a lesson they have twice every day.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47Can we ask all of you, have any of you discovered any landmines
0:13:47 > 0:13:49or anything that looks like a bomb
0:13:49 > 0:13:52and you've had to alert your teachers or the authorities?
0:14:06 > 0:14:10He found one of these? Good God!
0:14:10 > 0:14:12And do you know what it is?
0:14:12 > 0:14:14- Shell.- Shell.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18Shell? Artillery shell,
0:14:18 > 0:14:22because it's got the size next to it, 64 inches.
0:14:22 > 0:14:26I mean, it's a whopper of a weapon.
0:14:26 > 0:14:29So, did you, did you pick it up, did you touch it at all?
0:14:29 > 0:14:33No? Cos you knew not to, didn't you?
0:14:33 > 0:14:35Thanks to the teachers at the school.
0:14:35 > 0:14:39I think as much as anything that really brings home to me just,
0:14:39 > 0:14:42just what's happened in this country,
0:14:42 > 0:14:44just what's happened in this, in this region.
0:14:44 > 0:14:50Imagine if British children had to be told every single day
0:14:50 > 0:14:52about the dangers of landmines
0:14:52 > 0:14:57and about the risks of them having a leg or an arm blown off.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03It's almost impossible to, to contemplate.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09Landmines and bombs are slowly being cleared away,
0:15:09 > 0:15:12but there's clearly an urgent need to reconstruct homes and buildings.
0:15:16 > 0:15:18It's now really bucketing down,
0:15:18 > 0:15:22and this is why they need a proper school.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25You can't have lessons outside in this sort of weather.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33Save The Children is helping to rebuild this area of Sri Lanka,
0:15:33 > 0:15:35and new schools are a priority.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42The war's ended and reconstruction is under way, but there are
0:15:42 > 0:15:45still many unanswered questions about how the Sri Lankan government
0:15:45 > 0:15:47crushed the Tamil Tigers in 2009.
0:15:50 > 0:15:52Helped by Chinese military aid,
0:15:52 > 0:15:56and shielded by Chinese support at the United Nations,
0:15:56 > 0:16:00it seems clear government troops committed serious war crimes,
0:16:00 > 0:16:03including targeting civilians.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06It's something the Sri Lankan government denies.
0:16:11 > 0:16:14But this has become a dangerous place to ask questions
0:16:14 > 0:16:17or criticise the country's leadership.
0:16:17 > 0:16:19As I prepared to leave the island
0:16:19 > 0:16:22and continue my Indian Ocean journey,
0:16:22 > 0:16:24I passed through the capital city, Colombo,
0:16:24 > 0:16:27and visited the offices of a campaigning newspaper called
0:16:27 > 0:16:28The Sunday Leader.
0:16:31 > 0:16:34We've been attacked nine to ten times.
0:16:34 > 0:16:39We had a group of about 25, 30 armed people coming in vehicles,
0:16:39 > 0:16:42forcing themselves in.
0:16:42 > 0:16:43They got the security
0:16:43 > 0:16:47and the staff who were printing to kneel down at gunpoint.
0:16:47 > 0:16:51They brought gasoline, poured it around the machine
0:16:51 > 0:16:54and set fire to it, and asked them not to move.
0:16:54 > 0:16:56So they burnt your printing presses?
0:16:56 > 0:16:58They did.
0:16:58 > 0:17:02'Lal Wickrematunge is the outspoken managing editor of The Sunday Leader,
0:17:02 > 0:17:06'which regularly criticises government politicians.'
0:17:06 > 0:17:10He and his staff have suffered threats, attacks and beatings.
0:17:10 > 0:17:13They blame the government for their harassment.
0:17:13 > 0:17:17In January 2009, in the final stages of the civil war,
0:17:17 > 0:17:21Lal's brother, Lasantha, the founding editor of the paper,
0:17:21 > 0:17:23paid the ultimate price for speaking out.
0:17:24 > 0:17:29He was killed not far from here when motorcyclists,
0:17:29 > 0:17:37in total black outfits with black helmets,
0:17:37 > 0:17:41waylaid him and shot him.
0:17:43 > 0:17:44He was assassinated, he was murdered?
0:17:44 > 0:17:46He was, he was murdered.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51'Just a few days before he was killed, Lasantha wrote an article
0:17:51 > 0:17:53'in which he predicted his own death.'
0:17:56 > 0:17:59It starts with the headline "And Then They Came For Me",
0:17:59 > 0:18:02and it says, "In the course of the past few years
0:18:02 > 0:18:07"the independent media have increasingly come under attack.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10"Countless journalists have been harassed, threatened and killed.
0:18:10 > 0:18:15"When finally I am killed, it will be the government that kills me."
0:18:17 > 0:18:19And that was the last article he wrote?
0:18:22 > 0:18:23Yeah.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26It's an extraordinary piece of writing.
0:18:26 > 0:18:30Do you feel that your life is, is threatened?
0:18:30 > 0:18:34The death threats have kept coming, despite Lasantha's death.
0:18:35 > 0:18:41In fact, the last one was just nearly two weeks ago.
0:18:41 > 0:18:42Really?
0:18:42 > 0:18:47When the current editor was sent a death threat.
0:18:47 > 0:18:52Why are you still going on, why are you still publishing the paper,
0:18:52 > 0:18:55let alone the articles, what keeps you going?
0:18:57 > 0:19:00Well, that was what we set out to do,
0:19:00 > 0:19:05and if we don't do that, Lasantha laid down his life for no purpose.
0:19:09 > 0:19:13At least 16 reporters have been killed in Sri Lanka in recent years.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18The government denies any involvement,
0:19:18 > 0:19:21but Sri Lanka remains one of the world's most dangerous places
0:19:21 > 0:19:24to be a journalist.
0:19:27 > 0:19:30It was time for me to leave the island and head on.
0:19:36 > 0:19:38My next stop was the Indian state of Orissa
0:19:38 > 0:19:40on the east coast of the country.
0:19:44 > 0:19:45WHISTLE BLARES
0:19:57 > 0:20:00My guide to this chaotic part of India was Abhra Bhattacharya,
0:20:00 > 0:20:03an old friend from previous visits.
0:20:03 > 0:20:08The State of Orissa is one of the poorest in the country,
0:20:08 > 0:20:12so there are millions, tens of millions
0:20:12 > 0:20:17of people here who make their living from farming and from fishing.
0:20:17 > 0:20:20'And most of them seem to be on the same road as our car.'
0:20:20 > 0:20:24Whoa, look, there's cars coming the wrong way down the road!
0:20:24 > 0:20:27Get off the road! It's a dual carriageway going that way!
0:20:29 > 0:20:34There are law-abiding citizens of India driving in the correct manner
0:20:34 > 0:20:37that way, on the other side of the road, and there are numpty muppets
0:20:37 > 0:20:43driving giant trucks directly at our vehicle on our side of the road.
0:20:43 > 0:20:44Whoa!
0:20:44 > 0:20:47The truck coming at us, and a van coming,
0:20:47 > 0:20:50and then the blue truck coming the wrong way down the road!
0:20:50 > 0:20:52Abhra, what on earth is going on here?
0:20:52 > 0:20:54The road is new in this part of India,
0:20:54 > 0:20:57they don't know how to use it yet.
0:20:57 > 0:21:00I think it might be because people here believe in reincarnation, you know.
0:21:00 > 0:21:03They're not that worried about ending their lives
0:21:03 > 0:21:05in a fiery mess on the motorway.
0:21:07 > 0:21:08I'm bloody worried about it!
0:21:15 > 0:21:17We were aiming for a fishing port called Astaranga,
0:21:17 > 0:21:20to head out into the Indian Ocean.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23'It was a long journey, and once we were off the motorway...'
0:21:23 > 0:21:25- Here?- Here.
0:21:25 > 0:21:28'It was time for a pit stop to soothe nerves after a traumatic drive.'
0:21:28 > 0:21:31Abhra, this isn't quite what
0:21:31 > 0:21:35I had in mind when I said about going for a drink.
0:21:35 > 0:21:39I'm getting you fresh drink right from the trees.
0:21:39 > 0:21:41What's going on here? What's he doing?
0:21:41 > 0:21:43Well, he's sharpening his sickle.
0:21:45 > 0:21:48Who is this gentleman, what does he do?
0:21:48 > 0:21:50He actually gets the drink for everyone.
0:21:50 > 0:21:52What is his curious little get-up here?
0:21:54 > 0:21:58I just grabbed it, I'm very sorry, I'll put it back!
0:22:00 > 0:22:02What's these pots there, what has he got?
0:22:02 > 0:22:06That's the drink, that's the only source of alcoholic drink
0:22:06 > 0:22:08the villagers have around here.
0:22:08 > 0:22:10- An alcoholic drink?- Yeah.
0:22:10 > 0:22:13That is, that is somehow obtained from the trees here?
0:22:13 > 0:22:15Yeah.
0:22:17 > 0:22:20Oh, dear, I just saw up his shorts!
0:22:21 > 0:22:23Don't look, dear viewer, don't look!
0:22:23 > 0:22:26What exactly are you doing?
0:22:29 > 0:22:33Do you see what happens is they are chopping off
0:22:33 > 0:22:34the upper layer of the bark
0:22:34 > 0:22:38of the tree, and they make small channels.
0:22:38 > 0:22:40So they tap the tree? OK.
0:22:40 > 0:22:44They tap the tree, and when it's in the sun throughout the day
0:22:44 > 0:22:45- it gets fermented.- It ferments!
0:22:45 > 0:22:50'Once filtered of all the bugs that have collected in it during the day
0:22:50 > 0:22:53'I was assured coconut toddy makes a delicious drink.'
0:22:53 > 0:22:56Oh, my goodness! Let's give it a go.
0:22:59 > 0:23:04Mmm. That's not bad, it's very good in fact.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07Sweet, lightly alcoholic, I can taste.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13Go on, Abhra, try some. That's good, cheers, mate.
0:23:14 > 0:23:16- It's really good.- It's really fresh.
0:23:16 > 0:23:19Oh, drink it all, yes!
0:23:23 > 0:23:26What is it about blokes and alcohol, eh? Argh, yeah!
0:23:26 > 0:23:31Cheers there, Captain! Drink your own drink, yeah!
0:23:35 > 0:23:39Very memorable, Abhra, and it's fantastic to see you again, mate.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51After just a few more hours driving, we finally arrived
0:23:51 > 0:23:53at the fishing port.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57Hit by the smell of fish.
0:24:00 > 0:24:02Slapped round the face by it!
0:24:02 > 0:24:05'India is the world's second largest producer of seafood,
0:24:05 > 0:24:07'but these fish are just
0:24:07 > 0:24:09'a by-product of the main business here.'
0:24:09 > 0:24:12- This is our boat.- Which one? - This one.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15'I was heading out with men who catch
0:24:15 > 0:24:18'one of the most lucrative seafoods in the Indian Ocean.
0:24:18 > 0:24:19'Prawns.'
0:24:19 > 0:24:20Namaste, Captain.
0:24:29 > 0:24:33They're trying to manoeuvre the boat from this cramped bay!
0:24:33 > 0:24:34Out to sea!
0:24:40 > 0:24:43There are at least 30,000 trawlers like this
0:24:43 > 0:24:45up and down the Indian coastline.
0:24:45 > 0:24:47India is actually one of the biggest suppliers of prawns
0:24:47 > 0:24:49to British supermarkets.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52Prawns used to be something of a luxury in Britain,
0:24:52 > 0:24:56but a huge increase in prawn fishing here is one reason
0:24:56 > 0:24:59prawns are now just a few pounds for a bag.
0:24:59 > 0:25:02So how, Kilesh, how deep has the net gone now?
0:25:04 > 0:25:07TRANSLATION: It's hit the bottom now. 100 feet down.
0:25:08 > 0:25:11So, the net's now 100 foot down, 30 metres below,
0:25:11 > 0:25:15and it's basically being pulled along the bottom of the seabed,
0:25:15 > 0:25:21being dragged along by the sheer power of this, of this boat.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25Can we have a look around the boat?
0:25:25 > 0:25:27Come on, come and show us the boat.
0:25:30 > 0:25:32TRANSLATION: This room is for the crew.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34So this is where the guys sleep?
0:25:34 > 0:25:37It's a very tiny little space,
0:25:37 > 0:25:39and actually is this actually bunk beds, then?
0:25:39 > 0:25:41So one person there and another person there?
0:25:41 > 0:25:43TRANSLATION: Five people sleep here.
0:25:45 > 0:25:48Five guys can sleep in here?
0:25:48 > 0:25:51Whoa! That's a bit...
0:25:51 > 0:25:54That's a bit tight, like this!
0:25:54 > 0:25:56It's a bit cosy in there!
0:25:56 > 0:25:58When you go out, what's your prize catch?
0:26:00 > 0:26:02TRANSLATION: Prawns are the most expensive.
0:26:02 > 0:26:04We get the best price for them.
0:26:08 > 0:26:11The others are cheap and sell for a lower price.
0:26:11 > 0:26:15So, you're mainly after the prawns but you'll bring up a lot of other stuff as well?
0:26:15 > 0:26:16Ah-ha.
0:26:17 > 0:26:21Like other trawlers, they use a fine mesh net on this boat
0:26:21 > 0:26:23to catch prawns, with devastating consequences.
0:26:25 > 0:26:27The nets will just take everything.
0:26:27 > 0:26:29Yeah, of course, it'll be shrimps,
0:26:29 > 0:26:33but there'll be an extraordinary amount of by-catch.
0:26:33 > 0:26:35Now, the by-catch is a crucial issue in the Indian Ocean,
0:26:35 > 0:26:37and around our seas globally.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42By-catch is the other sea life that is brought up in the nets
0:26:42 > 0:26:44along with the targeted catch.
0:26:44 > 0:26:46Prawn fishing is responsible
0:26:46 > 0:26:49for a third of the world's discarded by-catch.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52That's tens of millions of tonnes of marine life
0:26:52 > 0:26:55being caught unnecessarily each year,
0:26:55 > 0:26:57most of which is just thrown away, dead.
0:26:58 > 0:27:03After more than an hour of trawling, it was time to haul in the catch.
0:27:03 > 0:27:07You've got these giant barn doors here which hold the net open
0:27:07 > 0:27:10when it's underwater.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13They're pulling those in and the net can't be far behind.
0:27:17 > 0:27:23Dragging huge, heavy fishing nets for miles and miles along the seabed
0:27:23 > 0:27:25also causes staggering damage to the marine environment.
0:27:32 > 0:27:34Flipping 'eck, there's hardly anything in it!
0:27:40 > 0:27:42But I found this the real shocker.
0:27:42 > 0:27:45After years of being criss-crossed by thousands of trawlers,
0:27:45 > 0:27:48these waters were almost empty of life.
0:27:48 > 0:27:50For decades, bottom trawling nets
0:27:50 > 0:27:52have scraped along the seabed off India,
0:27:52 > 0:27:55fishing the seas to death.
0:27:55 > 0:27:59The fine nets catch even tiny, juvenile fish which haven't had
0:27:59 > 0:28:03a chance to breed, so fish stocks never have a chance to recover.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05Abhra, does the amount of fish here surprise you?
0:28:05 > 0:28:07Definitely surprises me, of course.
0:28:07 > 0:28:08Why?
0:28:08 > 0:28:10We were near the breeding area,
0:28:10 > 0:28:13we should have got much more than what we got.
0:28:13 > 0:28:17You can see a few of the prize shrimp in there,
0:28:17 > 0:28:20this is what they've really been after.
0:28:20 > 0:28:24'There's such a demand for prawns from the richer parts of the world,
0:28:24 > 0:28:27'that poor fishermen in this part of the Indian Ocean
0:28:27 > 0:28:30'are emptying the sea to get at them.'
0:28:30 > 0:28:33Well, I'm absolutely amazed by how few fish there are here,
0:28:33 > 0:28:36and, and worried as well, frankly,
0:28:36 > 0:28:39cos we've dragged a huge net through the sea
0:28:39 > 0:28:41for more than an hour and this is all that it's brought up.
0:28:55 > 0:28:59The next morning, I headed a few miles along the coast to meet
0:28:59 > 0:29:02Tuku Behera, a local conservationist concerned about
0:29:02 > 0:29:06the impact of prawn trawlers on wildlife around the Indian Ocean.
0:29:10 > 0:29:12Oh, God, now that's desperate.
0:29:12 > 0:29:14The head of a turtle?
0:29:14 > 0:29:16Yeah.
0:29:17 > 0:29:20TRANSLATION: I noticed a rotting smell when we were passing by,
0:29:20 > 0:29:23so I thought there might be a carcass here.
0:29:25 > 0:29:28How many dead turtles do you find along the beach here?
0:29:30 > 0:29:34TRANSLATION: Every year, on the Orissa coast,
0:29:34 > 0:29:38about 10,000 to 15,000 dead turtles get washed up due to illegal fishing.
0:29:49 > 0:29:51To make the mortality figures look lower,
0:29:51 > 0:29:54Forest Department bury the turtles.
0:30:00 > 0:30:03If we didn't report it to the media,
0:30:03 > 0:30:06no-one would know the turtles are dying like this.
0:30:10 > 0:30:13- Shall we cover it back up, Tuku? - Yeah.
0:30:14 > 0:30:17'Tuku's village sits next to one of the world's largest nesting sites
0:30:17 > 0:30:19'for the Olive Ridley turtle.
0:30:21 > 0:30:24'To protect the turtles, trawling is supposed to be illegal here.'
0:30:24 > 0:30:27So what's this, what are these boats out here,
0:30:27 > 0:30:29are these trawlers?
0:30:29 > 0:30:30Yeah, some trawler here.
0:30:30 > 0:30:34TRANSLATION: They're all trawlers, and this is a marine reserve.
0:30:34 > 0:30:37Turtles have to come up to breathe every 45 minutes,
0:30:37 > 0:30:41but they stay in the trawlers' nets for four or five hours.
0:30:41 > 0:30:44They won't be able to breathe and they'll die.
0:30:47 > 0:30:49'There's no real enforcement of the law here,
0:30:49 > 0:30:54'so Tuku's taking direct action to protect the turtles.'
0:30:54 > 0:30:56What the hell is this?
0:30:56 > 0:30:58Ah wait here, wait.
0:31:00 > 0:31:02What are these structures, Tuku?
0:31:04 > 0:31:07TRANSLATION: We've made this artificial reef.
0:31:07 > 0:31:13We're hoping that fish will come and make it their breeding ground.
0:31:19 > 0:31:24And if people drop their nets on it, the nets will get damaged,
0:31:24 > 0:31:27so they can't do any bottom trawling.
0:31:31 > 0:31:34My God, you know, I can, there's more of them all around us.
0:31:34 > 0:31:37TRANSLATION: We've put about 80 of them in the sea already,
0:31:37 > 0:31:40and there are still about 65 left to go.
0:31:40 > 0:31:42We're slowly putting them in.
0:31:45 > 0:31:46How much do they...
0:31:49 > 0:31:50Argh!
0:31:50 > 0:31:52How the hell do you get them in the water?!
0:31:52 > 0:31:57TRANSLATION: You can't do it by yourself. We need lots of people.
0:31:57 > 0:31:58Abhra, you get on the front,
0:31:58 > 0:32:00I'll get on the back, we'll do it together, mate!
0:32:00 > 0:32:02Come on, everybody!
0:32:06 > 0:32:07Argh!
0:32:10 > 0:32:12Flipping 'eck!
0:32:14 > 0:32:15Argh!
0:32:17 > 0:32:18Whoar!
0:32:21 > 0:32:23Oh, flipping 'eck!
0:32:23 > 0:32:25I don't think it's good to be the tallest person.
0:32:38 > 0:32:40I'm loving this.
0:32:41 > 0:32:45These are people actually doing something to protect the ocean.
0:32:45 > 0:32:49SHOUTS AND CONVERSATION
0:32:54 > 0:32:56MEN SHOUT
0:33:18 > 0:33:20Well, the plan is to tie both boats together
0:33:20 > 0:33:23and then we're going to motor to the drop area.
0:33:24 > 0:33:27'Tuku places the concrete blocks in a formation designed
0:33:27 > 0:33:30'to make trawling in the area impossible.'
0:33:38 > 0:33:42I think he's checking where to put it on his GPS.
0:33:42 > 0:33:43This spot?
0:33:49 > 0:33:51Whoa!
0:33:54 > 0:33:58Congratulations, Tuku. Well done mate, very impressive.
0:33:59 > 0:34:01'With another concrete block laid in the water,
0:34:01 > 0:34:04'it was time for a celebratory swim.'
0:34:05 > 0:34:08Into the Indian Ocean! Come on! Arrgh!
0:34:10 > 0:34:13Come on, then!
0:34:15 > 0:34:18Well done, mate, congratulations, another net ripper in the water.
0:34:18 > 0:34:20Thank you!
0:34:27 > 0:34:29It's beautiful here.
0:34:31 > 0:34:36I just found out, though, that despite all Tuku's great work to try
0:34:36 > 0:34:39and save the sea off the coast here,
0:34:39 > 0:34:45there are plans to build a whopping great port not that far that way,
0:34:45 > 0:34:49with potentially disastrous consequences for this area.
0:34:56 > 0:34:59Along the 300-mile coast of Orissa, there are plans to
0:34:59 > 0:35:03build up to 15 new ports, one every 20 miles.
0:35:15 > 0:35:18I travelled on from India towards Bangladesh.
0:35:21 > 0:35:24I drove north up the coast to the border.
0:35:28 > 0:35:32You see the trucks on the left here queuing up to get into Bangladesh.
0:35:34 > 0:35:36Come here, mate.
0:35:36 > 0:35:37Thank you.
0:35:37 > 0:35:40- Cheers, mate. I hope to see you again.- Safe journey.
0:35:40 > 0:35:42- Thank you.- And have a nice trip, OK?
0:35:42 > 0:35:46Thank you. We've still got a long way to go, our bags are going. I have to follow them.
0:35:46 > 0:35:48Bye-bye Abhra!
0:35:48 > 0:35:50Bye, Abhra.
0:35:50 > 0:35:53- Morshed?- Yes.- Hello, mate. - Hi, how are you?- Very well.
0:35:53 > 0:35:56- How lovely, what a greeting! - Welcome to Bangladesh!
0:35:56 > 0:35:58- Thank you very much indeed.- Yes.
0:35:58 > 0:36:00- Thanks for coming all this way. - Nice to meet you. Yes.
0:36:02 > 0:36:06From the border, I headed south-east, back towards the coast.
0:36:07 > 0:36:10Much of Bangladesh is a giant tidal delta,
0:36:10 > 0:36:14where the Himalayan meltwater meets the Indian Ocean.
0:36:14 > 0:36:17If you want to get around, you need to find a boat.
0:36:19 > 0:36:22- Morshed, after you sir. - OK, thank you very much Simon,
0:36:22 > 0:36:26- let's go together.- Let's go.- Yeah. - Let's get on board.
0:36:26 > 0:36:30My new guide, Morshed Ali Khan, a Bangladeshi journalist,
0:36:30 > 0:36:32was taking me down river towards the sea.
0:36:36 > 0:36:40Here we go, this will be our home for a few says.
0:36:40 > 0:36:41They're taking off the anchor.
0:36:42 > 0:36:46Anchor's coming up, engines have started, we're heading off.
0:36:58 > 0:37:02As we headed south, we left Bangladesh's packed towns behind.
0:37:05 > 0:37:07But as night fell, there was a major disadvantage
0:37:07 > 0:37:10in having the only light for miles around.
0:37:10 > 0:37:11Bloody hell,
0:37:11 > 0:37:14we've got a few extra passengers on board.
0:37:18 > 0:37:20Oi, quick, quick, quick!
0:37:20 > 0:37:22Too many insects!
0:37:22 > 0:37:25Oh God, I've got to keep the door closed.
0:37:25 > 0:37:26I've got my pyjamas on,
0:37:26 > 0:37:28I've got to get into bed,
0:37:28 > 0:37:29too many insects,
0:37:29 > 0:37:32so I'm going into the little,
0:37:32 > 0:37:34little cabin here.
0:37:34 > 0:37:36More like a coffin!
0:37:38 > 0:37:40And I'm putting this in really tight!
0:37:40 > 0:37:44There you go, that's how you survive in the tropics,
0:37:44 > 0:37:46with a whopping big mozzie net.
0:37:49 > 0:37:50Oh, that's better.
0:37:52 > 0:37:54I think maybe I've got to turn the light out now,
0:37:54 > 0:37:56and get you out as well!
0:37:56 > 0:37:58LAUGHTER
0:37:58 > 0:38:00- Goodnight, mate.- Night, mate!
0:38:07 > 0:38:12'I'd seen in India how prawn fishing is damaging life in our oceans.'
0:38:13 > 0:38:17'Farming prawns, or shrimp, on land is an alternative to fishing them
0:38:17 > 0:38:23'out of the sea, and Bangladesh is a major producer of farmed prawns.'
0:38:23 > 0:38:27- See, this is a shrimp processing plant, this.- Just here?
0:38:27 > 0:38:30From here it goes to Europe and America.
0:38:30 > 0:38:33- It's huge. - There's another over there.
0:38:33 > 0:38:36This one there, and others coming up over there under construction.
0:38:36 > 0:38:39- So there's four...- Four.- There's three here and one just being built?
0:38:39 > 0:38:43- Yes, yes.- And these are all prawn, shrimp processing plants?- Yes, yes.
0:38:43 > 0:38:45My goodness. That gives you a sense,
0:38:45 > 0:38:48a real sense of the scale of the industry here.
0:38:49 > 0:38:53I hadn't realised prawns were so important to Bangladesh.
0:38:53 > 0:38:56Yeah, it is very important nowadays because, you know,
0:38:56 > 0:38:59it brings in a lot of hard cash from Europe and America.
0:38:59 > 0:39:02- In exports?- In exports, yes.
0:39:02 > 0:39:04There is another one here behind you on this side.
0:39:04 > 0:39:07My God, they're everywhere!
0:39:07 > 0:39:11Bangladesh is perfect for prawn farming, with vast areas
0:39:11 > 0:39:15of low-level land easily flooded with salt water at high tide.
0:39:22 > 0:39:25'Morshed was taking me to one of the hundreds of farms
0:39:25 > 0:39:26'in this part of the country.'
0:39:26 > 0:39:28All right, mate?
0:39:28 > 0:39:32'But first we headed for one of the few tall buildings in the area,
0:39:32 > 0:39:33'so I could get a better idea
0:39:33 > 0:39:36of how widespread prawn farming has become.'
0:39:36 > 0:39:38DOOR CREAKS
0:39:45 > 0:39:47This is all for...all prawn farms?
0:39:47 > 0:39:52As far as you can see, all prawn farm, all salt water.
0:39:54 > 0:39:56It's like an inland sea.
0:39:56 > 0:39:58It's all prawn.
0:39:58 > 0:40:03Now they're drying up to treat it with some chemicals.
0:40:03 > 0:40:06- To kill off parasites in the mud or something?- Yes.
0:40:08 > 0:40:13Around 40% of the prawns eaten around the world today are farmed.
0:40:13 > 0:40:16Demand is so high, particularly from Europe and the US,
0:40:16 > 0:40:20that more than 35,000 prawn farms now operate in Bangladesh.
0:40:22 > 0:40:26The scale of it is pretty breathtaking.
0:40:26 > 0:40:28The prawns are sold internationally
0:40:28 > 0:40:31by large firms and wealthy middlemen,
0:40:31 > 0:40:35but they're often farmed and produced by networks of villagers.
0:40:35 > 0:40:38Many were persuaded to get into the business
0:40:38 > 0:40:40by the promise of short-term gain,
0:40:40 > 0:40:42or because other farmers flooded their fields.
0:40:45 > 0:40:48Here we go, lots and lots of giant prawns.
0:40:51 > 0:40:55Here is some...black tiger.
0:40:55 > 0:40:58- This is the black tiger prawn? - Yes, this is what you like most.
0:40:58 > 0:40:59SIMON LAUGHS
0:40:59 > 0:41:01So here we are, this is what everybody's after,
0:41:01 > 0:41:04black tiger prawn. It's what the farmers want here
0:41:04 > 0:41:07because they get the best price for this when it goes for export,
0:41:07 > 0:41:12because this is what people want to eat in Europe, America, Asia.
0:41:14 > 0:41:16How many prawns can you take out
0:41:16 > 0:41:19from your patch of farm area on a good day?
0:41:21 > 0:41:23TRANSLATION: Every year we can get
0:41:23 > 0:41:26about 400 kilograms of prawns from one acre of land.
0:41:29 > 0:41:32Are you making a good living from the prawns then?
0:41:32 > 0:41:36No. I have to buy everything, even water.
0:41:36 > 0:41:39What I earn from the prawns, I spend on the things I need to live.
0:41:41 > 0:41:43Have you always farmed prawns or did you use to farm crops
0:41:43 > 0:41:45before you switched to prawns?
0:41:45 > 0:41:48I used to grow rice, which was good,
0:41:48 > 0:41:52but when everyone around me leased their land to prawn farmers,
0:41:52 > 0:41:54I had to start farming prawns too.
0:41:54 > 0:41:57Oh really? Presumably then your land had been inundated with salt water?
0:41:57 > 0:41:59Exactly.
0:42:02 > 0:42:05Awash with salt, almost all the land around here
0:42:05 > 0:42:07is now unsuitable for growing crops.
0:42:09 > 0:42:11Apart from prawns there's very little else,
0:42:11 > 0:42:14except salty and fertile mud.
0:42:14 > 0:42:17Flipping heck, I'm going to get stuck here!
0:42:19 > 0:42:22- Let's go that way.- That side, OK.
0:42:22 > 0:42:26'Prawn farming is an important industry around the Indian Ocean,
0:42:26 > 0:42:28'but it's a risky business
0:42:28 > 0:42:31'and once farmers switch to prawns, it's hard to switch back.'
0:42:33 > 0:42:34ENGINE SPLUTTERS
0:42:34 > 0:42:35- Wow!- Wow!- Hey!
0:42:35 > 0:42:38- ALL CHEER - Ha ha!
0:42:38 > 0:42:40'Morshed took me off on a local taxi
0:42:40 > 0:42:43'to show me what can happen when prawn farming fails.'
0:42:43 > 0:42:46THEY SHOUT IN BENGALI
0:42:49 > 0:42:52And tell him not to go round the South Circular!
0:42:54 > 0:42:58Prawn farming puts villagers at the mercy of powerful middlemen
0:42:58 > 0:43:01and fluctuating global prices.
0:43:01 > 0:43:04Western supermarkets are always driving prices lower
0:43:04 > 0:43:08so the average village prawn farmer here earns very little.
0:43:08 > 0:43:10But perhaps the biggest problem for villages is that
0:43:10 > 0:43:14after land is flooded with salty water, farmers are unable to grow
0:43:14 > 0:43:17the crops they need to eat and survive.
0:43:17 > 0:43:21This area was being used to cultivate prawns
0:43:21 > 0:43:24and then just a few years ago the people here decided they wanted
0:43:24 > 0:43:28to start growing crops instead, and they planted rice,
0:43:28 > 0:43:29but the rice died.
0:43:29 > 0:43:32The reason is, once you've let salty,
0:43:32 > 0:43:38saline seawater on to farmland, it basically ruins it.
0:43:39 > 0:43:42'And that's why some people in Bangladesh
0:43:42 > 0:43:45'wish they'd never switched to farming our prawns.'
0:43:51 > 0:43:54Morshed took me to see one village that had resisted
0:43:54 > 0:43:57the lure of prawns, and the salt water that comes with them.
0:43:59 > 0:44:02- Is this it here, Morshed? Not really a landing point, is there?- No.
0:44:05 > 0:44:08- Oh, flipping heck! You go first then.- OK, I'll go first.
0:44:10 > 0:44:12- I've got you just in case you sink. - OK.
0:44:12 > 0:44:15Oh, my goodness. Oh, my... Right, shoes off.
0:44:16 > 0:44:18- Think you were wearing shoes... - Shoes off!
0:44:21 > 0:44:23- It's fine man.- Hang on.
0:44:23 > 0:44:25Hang on, I'm coming.
0:44:25 > 0:44:27Oh, wow, I'm going down!
0:44:27 > 0:44:31- This is the stickiest, gloopiest mud...- I know.
0:44:31 > 0:44:33- ..I have ever been in.- Yeah.
0:44:33 > 0:44:35I can't get my left foot out.
0:44:35 > 0:44:36Save me!
0:44:36 > 0:44:38Help me out of this.
0:44:39 > 0:44:41Morshed, you've a right approach to life, haven't you?
0:44:41 > 0:44:44Do this, do this, let's have a dance here!
0:44:44 > 0:44:45These are happy people here, you know?
0:44:45 > 0:44:47Please rescue us from the mud.
0:44:47 > 0:44:49Oh, oo-er!
0:44:49 > 0:44:52Thank you, sir. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
0:44:56 > 0:45:00- Ah, look at over the other side. - Yeah, you can see the difference.
0:45:00 > 0:45:02So this is rice in the field, isn't it?
0:45:02 > 0:45:04- Yes, this is rice, this is paddy.- Food!
0:45:04 > 0:45:07Food, you can see all these fruit trees around.
0:45:07 > 0:45:10- Coconut trees... - Birds, I can hear birds as well.
0:45:15 > 0:45:18It obviously is a very poor village,
0:45:18 > 0:45:22but it has got a real feeling that there is life here.
0:45:22 > 0:45:26It's not dead and sterile in the way the prawn farming villages are.
0:45:26 > 0:45:28This is Rekharani, Simon.
0:45:28 > 0:45:31- Rekharani?- Yes.- Hello, Rekharani.
0:45:31 > 0:45:33What are you growing here, Rekharani?
0:45:35 > 0:45:38TRANSLATION: We've got mangoes,
0:45:38 > 0:45:39we've got cherries,
0:45:39 > 0:45:42we've got lots of different kinds of fruits.
0:45:43 > 0:45:46We grow vegetables, pumpkins and lentils.
0:45:47 > 0:45:49We grow crops all year round.
0:45:51 > 0:45:54Why do you not want to farm prawns here?
0:45:54 > 0:45:57Why have you, why are you farming like this, instead?
0:45:59 > 0:46:01People who have turned to prawn farming
0:46:01 > 0:46:05now have to come to us to buy vegetables.
0:46:05 > 0:46:07Even to buy water.
0:46:07 > 0:46:09That's why we don't want to farm prawns.
0:46:12 > 0:46:15If we didn't let them use the water from our ponds,
0:46:15 > 0:46:18they wouldn't have any water to drink or to cook with.
0:46:20 > 0:46:25When people start prawn farming in this low-lying country
0:46:25 > 0:46:26the salt water can get everywhere,
0:46:26 > 0:46:30polluting any sources of fresh water.
0:46:30 > 0:46:33So this is one of the crucial differences, of course,
0:46:33 > 0:46:36with the prawn farming villages, because they can use the water here,
0:46:36 > 0:46:42not just for cooking, but also to put on their crops, to grow food.
0:46:42 > 0:46:45You can't do that if you've converted to prawns.
0:46:45 > 0:46:48If you convert to prawns, you've got salt water,
0:46:48 > 0:46:51it's no good for anything, really.
0:46:51 > 0:46:52Except, for growing prawns.
0:46:54 > 0:46:57Trawling for cheap prawns is harming the ocean.
0:46:57 > 0:47:00Farming cheap prawns often damages the environment on land
0:47:00 > 0:47:03and can blight the lives of villagers.
0:47:04 > 0:47:08Supermarket prawns in the west are much cheaper than they used to be,
0:47:08 > 0:47:12but some people here in Bangladesh are paying a heavy price.
0:47:20 > 0:47:23It was time to explore the rest of Bangladesh
0:47:23 > 0:47:25and we headed east.
0:47:25 > 0:47:28Bangladesh is a beautiful country and one of my favourites,
0:47:28 > 0:47:31yet it doesn't attract many tourists.
0:47:31 > 0:47:34But further round the coast, we stopped off at Cox's Bazar,
0:47:34 > 0:47:38Bangladesh's great hope for an Indian Ocean resort.
0:47:38 > 0:47:41There's an amazing amount of development underway here.
0:47:42 > 0:47:45Big hotel going up there, hotel going up here,
0:47:45 > 0:47:47at least one hotel over there.
0:47:48 > 0:47:51The place is basically a building site.
0:47:51 > 0:47:52Oh, my God!
0:47:52 > 0:47:54Look at this.
0:47:54 > 0:47:56Now that is definitely what you want to see
0:47:56 > 0:47:59when you're coming in to a beach resort.
0:47:59 > 0:48:01It may not have the finishing touches in place, just yet,
0:48:01 > 0:48:03but Cox's Bazar has one very big advantage
0:48:03 > 0:48:06when compared to other seaside resorts.
0:48:07 > 0:48:09Wow!
0:48:09 > 0:48:10It's the starting point for a beach
0:48:10 > 0:48:13that stretches for 70 miles down the coast,
0:48:13 > 0:48:15making it one of the longest in the world.
0:48:17 > 0:48:20- I'm very impressed, Morshed. Very impressed.- Yeah.
0:48:20 > 0:48:24I've been on a good few beaches while we've been travelling around the Indian Ocean
0:48:24 > 0:48:25and this is spectacular.
0:48:25 > 0:48:27What's going on here?
0:48:27 > 0:48:31Ah, this is one of the watersports we have.
0:48:42 > 0:48:45Cox's Bazar is home to Bangladesh's first surf school,
0:48:45 > 0:48:48run by Zafar Alam.
0:48:49 > 0:48:51Hi, Zafar.
0:48:53 > 0:48:56How are you? Ah, this is Simon.
0:48:56 > 0:48:57- All right, Simon... - Lovely to meet you.
0:48:57 > 0:49:02You've got warm water, easy, easy waves to learn on.
0:49:02 > 0:49:04- A good place to start surfing?- Yes.
0:49:04 > 0:49:07I have no idea, man, what you are talking about.
0:49:07 > 0:49:08I have never surfed in my life!
0:49:08 > 0:49:12I give you 100% guarantee, one minute surfing
0:49:12 > 0:49:16you can stand up. I give you 100% guarantee.
0:49:16 > 0:49:19- 100% guarantee?- Yes! - That's a pretty good deal!- Yeah!
0:49:19 > 0:49:22- What about for Morshed? - What about for me?
0:49:22 > 0:49:24- Yeah, same thing, same thing. - Same?- 100% guarantee?
0:49:24 > 0:49:27- Yeah, same thing.- All right, we'll take you up on that, mate.
0:49:29 > 0:49:30Whoa!
0:49:44 > 0:49:47Much to my surprise, I managed to stand up,
0:49:47 > 0:49:49albeit on some pretty tiny waves.
0:49:52 > 0:49:55Morshed gamely had a good go at it.
0:50:00 > 0:50:03But, clearly, he had a dodgy surfboard...
0:50:06 > 0:50:07..and was up for a refund.
0:50:28 > 0:50:30This is really not my cup of tea man!
0:50:30 > 0:50:33I'd better do it in the bath tub!
0:50:33 > 0:50:36It's a lot of fun
0:50:36 > 0:50:39and a lovely little treat,
0:50:39 > 0:50:42as we near the end of this part of the journey.
0:50:42 > 0:50:47I'd like to catch a few more waves but I think we should get in
0:50:47 > 0:50:49and get on the road.
0:50:54 > 0:50:57We headed a short way along the coast to Chittagong,
0:50:57 > 0:51:00Bangladesh's second city.
0:51:00 > 0:51:03It's a massive port and connects the Bangladeshi economy
0:51:03 > 0:51:06with the rest of the world, via the Indian Ocean.
0:51:13 > 0:51:15What on earth?!
0:51:16 > 0:51:19Can we stop, can we stop? Look at this!
0:51:19 > 0:51:21- Come on, let's go and have a look.- Yeah.
0:51:21 > 0:51:24- This is bizarre. Come on, Morshed.- Yeah.
0:51:31 > 0:51:32Lifeboats!
0:51:32 > 0:51:37They've got hundreds of them, but they stretch down the river here.
0:51:37 > 0:51:40It's like a car park for lifeboats.
0:51:40 > 0:51:43So where are these from?
0:51:43 > 0:51:45Ah, some of these are from the ships
0:51:45 > 0:51:48which are being broken here, ocean-going ships.
0:51:48 > 0:51:50Look, there's one here, Portsmouth!
0:51:50 > 0:51:54- It's a big industry in this part of the world, Simon.- Yeah?
0:51:54 > 0:51:59But here the end of life ships from around the world are recycled.
0:51:59 > 0:52:02When they're about 35 years old,
0:52:02 > 0:52:06they're sent here to be dismantled, piece by piece.
0:52:06 > 0:52:09You can see one of the pieces here, there are a million others.
0:52:11 > 0:52:14I'd heard that every year hundreds of enormous ocean-going ships
0:52:14 > 0:52:17from around the world are brought here to Chittagong to be scrapped,
0:52:17 > 0:52:21but the Bangladeshi government doesn't want outsiders to see what's happening here,
0:52:21 > 0:52:25and we were warned we might be arrested if caught with cameras.
0:52:25 > 0:52:27We're entering the ship breaking area now
0:52:27 > 0:52:30so we're going to have to turn off our cameras and hide them away
0:52:30 > 0:52:32until we get onto our boat.
0:52:35 > 0:52:38I was keen to see the ship breaking yards
0:52:38 > 0:52:41so we came up with an unusual way of getting closer.
0:52:41 > 0:52:45We're on a boat, but we're actually on land.
0:52:45 > 0:52:49We're being pushed on our boat across super-slimy mud
0:52:49 > 0:52:54out to another boat that we're going to take up and down the coast.
0:52:54 > 0:52:57We're reliably informed it is actually in the water.
0:53:01 > 0:53:03The owners of the ship breaking yards
0:53:03 > 0:53:05won't allow TV cameras onto their beaches.
0:53:05 > 0:53:08But getting our own boat meant we could see the wrecked ships
0:53:08 > 0:53:10from the sea.
0:53:14 > 0:53:18We're having to be a bit careful, another boat has come up to ours.
0:53:18 > 0:53:20I think, just to take some clothing off,
0:53:20 > 0:53:24but we're just trying to make sure they don't see our large cameras.
0:53:25 > 0:53:26CONVERSATION IN BACKGROUND
0:53:26 > 0:53:28MORSHED: OK, we're coming.
0:53:28 > 0:53:30The guys were getting a bit jumpy and concerned.
0:53:34 > 0:53:36When we got out onto the water,
0:53:36 > 0:53:38it soon became clear what the fuss is about.
0:53:46 > 0:53:47Bloody hell!
0:53:49 > 0:53:51This is a really awesome sight, isn't it?
0:53:55 > 0:53:58Giant ships with great huge chunks ripped off them.
0:54:02 > 0:54:05My God, look over there, they've peeled away the side of the ship.
0:54:05 > 0:54:08The scale of this is just incredible.
0:54:10 > 0:54:14But the...the whole of the back is off this one and this one,
0:54:14 > 0:54:17and then there's more stretching out into the distance,
0:54:17 > 0:54:19we can see dozens of them.
0:54:25 > 0:54:28Look at all the oil in the water down here.
0:54:30 > 0:54:34Black gunk floating on the surface.
0:54:34 > 0:54:37There's no question, it's coming from these ships.
0:54:38 > 0:54:42Every year, scores of tankers and container ships
0:54:42 > 0:54:46are deliberately rammed onto this ten-mile stretch of beach.
0:54:46 > 0:54:49It's a filthy and highly dangerous business.
0:54:52 > 0:54:55The workers descend on the ship and start to tear it apart.
0:54:55 > 0:54:59- What do they use?- They use blowtorches, hammers, axes,
0:54:59 > 0:55:01anything they have.
0:55:01 > 0:55:04Hundreds of them, even children are employed here, you know.
0:55:04 > 0:55:07And is that one of the reasons why people aren't happy for us
0:55:07 > 0:55:09to film it from shore, because we'll see the children working?
0:55:09 > 0:55:11That's right, that's right.
0:55:11 > 0:55:14Children working and workers dying, every now and then.
0:55:14 > 0:55:19Sometimes they fall off from a height of a six-storey tall building.
0:55:19 > 0:55:24Sometimes they're crushed under heavy metal falling on to them.
0:55:24 > 0:55:27Sometimes they are suffocated inside a gas chamber.
0:55:28 > 0:55:33So people are...there are accidents here fairly regularly then by the sounds of it?
0:55:33 > 0:55:35Very regular accidents, very regular.
0:55:37 > 0:55:39About eight people die a month.
0:55:39 > 0:55:42- Each month?- Each month.
0:55:42 > 0:55:45But that's hundreds over the recent years, then?
0:55:45 > 0:55:49- Yes.- Good God.
0:55:49 > 0:55:51Yet in a poor country like Bangladesh,
0:55:51 > 0:55:54thousands of people are willing to take the risk
0:55:54 > 0:55:57in return for wages of just a few pounds a day.
0:55:59 > 0:56:02There are about 40 ship breaking yards here,
0:56:02 > 0:56:04each run by a different businessman.
0:56:04 > 0:56:06Though they may not be seaworthy anymore,
0:56:06 > 0:56:09the ships are still worth a fortune as scrap metal
0:56:09 > 0:56:13and yard owners will pay a few million dollars for each one.
0:56:20 > 0:56:24The main road from Chittagong is lined with scrap dealers.
0:56:32 > 0:56:36Almost every last fragment of the dismantled ships
0:56:36 > 0:56:38is salvaged and recycled.
0:56:41 > 0:56:43And they'll sell these on?
0:56:43 > 0:56:44They'll sell the engines on?
0:56:44 > 0:56:47Yes, they will sell the engines. See...
0:56:47 > 0:56:50A huge proportion of the value of the dead ships
0:56:50 > 0:56:51is simply the metal.
0:56:51 > 0:56:54The ship breaking yards claim they supply more than half of
0:56:54 > 0:56:58Bangladesh's steel and there's a great deal more on offer.
0:57:00 > 0:57:04- Look at this!- Toilets!
0:57:04 > 0:57:06Are you selling these toilets?
0:57:06 > 0:57:08- Toilet?- Is this from you?
0:57:08 > 0:57:09- A ship.- Who buys these?
0:57:19 > 0:57:21Perfectly functional, all right...
0:57:21 > 0:57:24Granted it's a little bit mucky at the moment.
0:57:24 > 0:57:26I've stayed in hotels that are worse than this!
0:57:27 > 0:57:30See this isn't a chuck-away country,
0:57:30 > 0:57:32this is a country where stuff is reused.
0:57:38 > 0:57:40South of Chittagong lies the River Naf,
0:57:40 > 0:57:44which marks Bangladesh's border with Burma.
0:57:48 > 0:57:51So I've reached the very edge of Bangladesh.
0:57:51 > 0:57:54That's Burma over there, on the other side of the river.
0:57:54 > 0:57:57It's opening up a little bit but it's still a very repressive country
0:57:57 > 0:58:01and this part of my journey ends here.
0:58:01 > 0:58:02I'll be sorry to leave Bangladesh,
0:58:02 > 0:58:05it's a country I've got a real soft spot for.
0:58:06 > 0:58:10On the next bit of my travels, I'll be heading to Australia
0:58:10 > 0:58:14where I'll be finishing my entire journey around the Indian Ocean.
0:58:14 > 0:58:17'Next time, on the final leg of my journey,
0:58:17 > 0:58:21'I visit Indonesia and help harvest a future wonder crop.'
0:58:21 > 0:58:22Ah!
0:58:22 > 0:58:23'In Western Australia,
0:58:23 > 0:58:27'I have a close encounter with a mighty predator.'
0:58:27 > 0:58:29It's biting. Oo-er! God, look at those teeth!
0:58:29 > 0:58:32'Before I reach the end of my Indian Ocean journey
0:58:32 > 0:58:34'at spectacular Cape Leeuwin.'
0:58:54 > 0:58:58Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd