*NEWS*ILLEGAL FISHING THREAT TO SEAS

[Anonymous]

Illegal fishing threat to seas

It is one of the most unregulated, uncontrolled businesses that is going on Claude Martin, WWF director-general

Illegal fishing fleets are plundering the seas by taking advantage of
rules allowing them to adopt “flags of convenience”, a report has
claimed.

The report by the UN
International Transport Workers’ Federation and WWF calls for the
abolition of the system, which it describes as corrupt.

It says some vessels also flout health and safety rules and use forced labour.

The annual value of illegal fishing has been estimated at $1.2bn (£679m), but the real figure could be far more.

Flags of convenience can be bought, sometimes over the internet, for
just a few hundred dollars. This can give a ship the appearance of
legitimacy within hours.

The country under whose flag a boat sails is responsible in international law for controlling the activities of that vessel.

This includes ensuring that it abides by national and international
regulations, such as fishing quotas and labour and safety standards.

Landlocked countries

However, the report says that some countries allowing boats to fly their flags for a fee fail to enforce such rules.

“We know of fishing vessels that carry up to 12 different flags on
board, and they re-flag their ship at sea,” Dr Claude Martin,
director-general of WWF, told the BBC.

“If landlocked countries sell flags of convenience, they couldn’t care less what’s going on at sea.

“It is one of the most unregulated, uncontrolled businesses that is going on.”

Some of the most popular countries for crews seeking flags of
convenience are Belize, Honduras, Panama; and St Vincent and the
Grenadines.

But it is shipping countries in European Union countries which have the largest number of ships flying these flags.

Spain, which receives the most generous EU fishing subsidies, tops the list with 46.

Many vessels, particularly those pursuing high value fish such as
swordfish and tuna, transfer their catch to other boats to “launder”
their illegally caught fish.

In addition to threatening the world’s fisheries,
bycatch – the incidental capture of non-targeted species – from pirate
fishing operations is a serious threat to sea turtles, albatross,
sharks and a range of other species.

[Author]

November 3, 2005 at 10:52 AM