Source: La Opinion

The North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC) and the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) have newly ‘blacklisted’ 21 vessels for illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Of the total, five sail under the flag of Panama, another five under Cyprus, three under Georgia, two under Russia, and one each under Sierra Leone, Conakry (Guinea) and Togo, respectively.

The other three vessels added to the list do not sport a flag or remain undefined in terms of whether or not they have a sponsor state.

Galician shipowners, some of them recidivists, are among the other shipowners of these vessels.

For example, the fishing vessel Sunny Jane - flagless and the property of shipbuilder firm Ribeira Vidal Armadores, the Ulla - registered in Georgia - and Alboran II, of Panama.

The list of illegal fishing vessels was last modified in March, and will now incorporate these 21 vessels.

In addition, it follows the corresponding change in the Community legal ordinance, since the European Union (EU) is part of the agreement on future multilateral cooperation in the fishing-grounds of the Northeastern Atlantic.

In early July, the government of Spain reaffirmed its commitment to reinforce Spanish legal regulations against IUU fishing through the new Sustainable Fishing Law.

The Law is expected to consolidate the basic lines of domestic action in the fight against illegal IUU fishing, stated the head of the Ministry of Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs (MARM), Elena Espinosa, to members of Congress. It will also incorporate border control and coordination mechanisms to prevent the importation of fishing products derived from non-legal capture.

In addition, Espinosa argued for zero tolerance in the fight against IUU fishing in late June during the opening ceremony of the Joint Meeting II of the Tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organisations, which took place in San Sebastian.