SHIPPAGAN, N.B. — The war of words intensified in the New Brunswick crab dispute Thursday when inshore fishermen accused crab captains of holding the valuable fishery hostage.

Sandy Siegel, spokesman for the Maritime Fishermens Union, which represents about 1,300 inshore fishermen, said crab captains are using fear tactics to keep others off the water and away from the crab fishery.

"The whole industry is being held hostage," said Siegel. "They have a stranglehold on the industry. They do not want to share that resource."

The captains on the Acadian and Gaspe peninsulas have tied up their boats and are boycotting the lucrative crab fishery, worth over $200 million last year.

They are furious that the federal Fisheries Department reduced the crab quota this year and increased the number of fishermen who can have a share in the fishery.

That anger turned into rioting last week as a mob destroyed four fishing boats, a fish plant, and a federal fisheries office in Shippagan.

The crab captains, who run what is called the traditional fleet, have advised other fishermen to stay away from the fishing grounds until the situation is resolved.

So far, that has happened. But now inshore fishermen and native fishermen, who also have access to the crab resource, are considering sending out their boats.

"Our members need to fish in the next four or five days or they lose their season," said Siegel, adding that fishermen are preparing their boats and gear.

Peter Noel, spokesman for the Northeast New Brunswick Crabbers Association, said it is in everyone's best interest to force Ottawa to sit down and negotiate a more acceptable sharing of the crab pie.

"If they want to be patient with us, I think it will be for the best for everybody in the long term," Noel said.

The crab captains rejected a federal proposal earlier this week aimed at ending the standoff.

Noel said he doesn't know what will happen next.

"We are determined to keep our boats tied at the wharf until there is a resolution," he said.

Meanwhile, tension is building in the communities that line the Acadian Peninsula, where fishing is a way of life and the main source of income.

Not only are the crab boats tied up, fish plants are also idle. Fish plant workers, and deckhands who work the crab boats, are struggling to get by without regular pay cheques.

"It's not a good feeling," said Shippagan Mayor Raymond Hache, when asked about the town's mood.

"The people who depend on this industry, they want to see this settled."

Siegel said his members feel threatened by the crab fishermen.

"We're afraid," he said.

Siegel said the crab fishermen don't appreciate the privilege they have in fishing the crab grounds.

He said it may be time for Ottawa to hand out crab permits to people who are willing to fish, instead of to people who want to use the fishery as a weapon of economic power.

Noel, a crab boat captain for over 30 years, said he's tired of seeing the fishery used as a weapon of political power.

"The East Coast fishing industries have been politicized for years," said Noel. "It has been used as a political play toy."