Source: FishNewsEU
A French-flagged tuna purse seiner is the latest vessel to face sanctions under Sierra Leone’s crackdown on Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing.
The FV Sterenn (IMO 9225548) owned by France Thon of Concarneau is under arrest in Freetown for failing to communicate its entry to Sierra Leone waters as well as failing to submit catch reports. She was fined US$ 51,000 and Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources (MFMR) has also seized her catch of 320 tons of tuna, valued at around $650,000.The tuna is believed to be a mixture of yellow fin, skipjack and bigeye.
FV Sterenn was arrested by a Sierra Leonean boarding team on the USS Simpson as part of a United States Navy African Maritime Law Enforcement Partnership (AMLEP) mission to SL. The arrest of the French vessel brings to eight the number of IUU vessels identified by MFMR since November 2011. IUU fishing costs the country tens of millions of dollars each year in lost economic activity and Government revenue. In particular, it impairs the life chances of some of West Africa’s most vulnerable communities, who depend on fishing for food security and employment. In the past the six months the Ocean 3, Marampa 803, Yuan Yu 701 and Puyu 6016 have all been fined, paying a combined total of over $350,000 for a range of IUU offences.
In addition, the Government is pursuing four vessels for IUU activity—the Marcia 777, Kum Myeong 702, the Five Star and the Ocean 3 (for subsequent offences following its initial fining). All four are flagged to South Korea and fled Sierra Leone after being documented operating illegally by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF). Their flag state, South Korea, and their likely destination, Guinea, have both been contacted to affect an arrest and return of the vessels. Alongside these enforcement measures, MFMR is tightening rules governing the use of Vessel Monitoring Systems by licensed vessels and is reforming its fisheries observer program.
Steve Trent, Executive Director of the Environmental Justice Foundation, said in response to the arrests: “This is a potentially transformative moment in fisheries enforcement in West Africa. We congratulate Sierra Leone on the series of arrests it has made and the subsequent reduction in IUU fishing in the country’s waters. We are also proud of the contribution that EJF’s local staff and new surveillance vessel have made to the crackdown. This is just the first step, however. Vessels that have been caught in Sierra Leone are moving to neighboring countries to carry on their illegal activities. We need a regional response to this threat, underpinned by increased transparency across the global seafood market so that retailers and consumers can avoid pirate fish.â€
Dr. Soccoh Kabia, the country’s Minister for Fisheries and Marine Resources, said: “We are working to ensure that every fishing vessel within Sierra Leone’s waters operates in compliance with our laws. It is crucial that we protect our valuable marine resources, in order that they continue to be a source of livelihoods, food security and government revenue. We are grateful to the French government for their swift cooperation in this matter and for exercising their duties as a flag State. We are reaching out to partners in the region and beyond to ensure that we coordinate our efforts to combat IUU fishing. This sends a clear message to poachers and would-be poachers that illegal fishing is not tolerated in the maritime waters of Sierra Leone.â€