Back to news article list

Taiwan Council Condemns Greenpeace For Boarding Vesselff

29 April 2008 Taiwan

Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture have Greenpeace activists for boarding a Taiwanese fishing boat in the South Pacific earlier this week to check for illegal catch reports Taipei news source.

In a statement the council said that the Pingtung-based 98-tonne Niensheng No. 3 was on the open seas north of the Solomon Islands on April 21 when Greenpeace activists interrupted its operations, using a 2,000-tonne vessel equipped with a helicopter.

The Greenpeace members boarded the vessel to check for illegal shark fin harvesting and excessive tuna fishing. The Ninesheng skipper says they found engierh, but continued to trail the ship for six to seven hours.

The statement says  Niensheng No. 3 is on the list of vessels permitted to fish in the region by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) and the South Pacific Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA), the statement argued that Greenpeace activists’ forced shipboard check, without the Taiwan government’s approval, was in stark violation of Taiwan’s legal jurisdiction and International Law.