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High seas arrest of bottom trawler
Greenpeace research alerted Norwegian authorities
30 June 2006
The pirate trawler Kabou that was arrested by Norway in June has now arrived Portugal and its home town Aveiro.
Enlarge ImageUPDATE AUGUST 15 2006
The pirate trawler Joana (aka Kabou aka Lootus) that was arrested by Norway in June has now arrived Portugal and its home town Aveiro. The arrival was not communicated by Portugal to Norway, but according to Norwegian officials, the Portugese Fisheries Ministry has said that "they have control over the vessel, and that the entire harbour of Aveiro has been closed to any fish offloading". This was communicated after Greenpeace had documented that the vessel had arrived Aveiro.
When we spotted the vessel Wednesday 15 August 2006, it looked empty and abandoned. We saw no guards nor police either, and doubt the entire Aveiro port is closed for fish offloads.On the same quay as the KABOU were also the trawlers BRITES and KERGUELEN, all three controlled by Silvia Vieira. Both Kerguelen and Kabou are blacklisted bu NEAFC for illegal fishing. Such blacklisting means for example that all contracting port states, like Portugal, must inspect all such vessels, refuse all offloading of fish and refuse any service.
From the fall, even entry into port will be prohibited. It is currently very unclear if Portugal is living up to its commitments regarding these vessels, or the Portugese owners Silvia Vieira.
The pirate trawler Joana (aka Kabou aka Lootus) that was arrested by Norway in June has now arrived Portugal and its home town Aveiro. The arrival was not communicated by Portugal to Norway, but according to Norwegian officials, the Portugese Fisheries Ministry has said that "they have control over the vessel, and that the entire harbour of Aveiro has been closed to any fish offloading". This was communicated after Greenpeace had documented that the vessel had arrived Aveiro.
When we spotted the vessel Wednesday 15 August 2006, it looked empty and abandoned. We saw no guards nor police either, and doubt the entire Aveiro port is closed for fish offloads.On the same quay as the KABOU were also the trawlers BRITES and KERGUELEN, all three controlled by Silvia Vieira. Both Kerguelen and Kabou are blacklisted bu NEAFC for illegal fishing. Such blacklisting means for example that all contracting port states, like Portugal, must inspect all such vessels, refuse all offloading of fish and refuse any service.
From the fall, even entry into port will be prohibited. It is currently very unclear if Portugal is living up to its commitments regarding these vessels, or the Portugese owners Silvia Vieira.
The Barents Sea is home to the last remaining relatively healthy cod stock on the planet. As in other fisheries, it is common for fishing vessels to fly 'flags of convenience' to hide their true owners, and gain access where they have not been provided with a permit to fish.
This bottom trawler was fishing with no licence in the Barents Sea "loophole" - an area between the Norwegian and Russian Exclusive Economic Zones and outside of both. Catching a vessel fishing illegally would be made easier if this area were set aside as an International Marine Reserve: no fishing would be allowed. A marine reserve would also benefit adjacent fisheries by giving fish a safe place to breed, grow larger and develop increased reproductive potential.
Yesterday's arrest comes a week after The Times of London revealed:
Mafia-style gangs from Russia are
plundering protected stocks and then laundering their illegally-caught
hauls through fishing ports in Britain
Cod set for British dinner plates has become the latest commodity to be plundered by mafia-style criminal gangs using consumers as accessories in a growing deep-sea crime.
Cod set for British dinner plates has become the latest commodity to be plundered by mafia-style criminal gangs using consumers as accessories in a growing deep-sea crime.
In fact, estimates are that every fifth cod from this region is caught illegally, and they end up on supermarket shelves all over the world.
It is not yet known if the Joana/Lootus is connected to organized crime, or was simply practicing what is considered business as usual by many rogue fishing companies. However, the fact that the Joana/Lootus was bottom trawling, one of the most destructive methods of fishing, and flagrantly avoiding international laws, argues for severe legal action against those responsible for its operations – the Silva Vieira.
The Joana/Lootus is now being held in port. Its crew refused to cooperate when boarded, and in the end the coast guard cut the ship's nets loose in order to bring them in. While it is good to see justice being served in this case, the reality is that most pirate fishing vessels operate outside the law, rather than in direct violation of it.
Another positive step would be for the Norwegian government to support a moratorium on high seas bottom trawling at the UN later this year as a first step towards providing urgently needed protection to deep sea life while better laws are put into place to end pirate fishing.
