Chokka catch on captured illegal fishing vessels valued at R70m

24 May 2016 - 13:28 By Mike Loewe

Three foreign-owned fishing trawlers allegedly looted 600 tons of lucrative South African chokka (squid) valued at R70-million as well as tons of fish from Eastern Cape waters. The shocking discovery was made in the East London port on Monday after the South African government sent fisheries vessels backed with naval muscle to capture two smart new industrial-strength Chinese fishing vessels – the Fu Yuan Yu 7880 and Fu Yang Yu 7881 – and a rusty Indonesian fishing vessel‚ Run Da 617. Dino Moodley‚ chairperson of the SA Squid Management Industrial Association on Monday night put the value of the catch at R70-million “because there is such a shortage”. “Our season only opens up on July 1. We are trying to protect our resources and here you have these foreign vessels coming in and catching‚” he said.“They are also using automated squid jiggers which are very quick and we are not allowed to use them because we have to use fishermen.”For years‚ Eastern Cape conservationists‚ led by the Border Deepsea Angling Association‚ have protested against the night-time plunder of marine reserves by illegal fishing vessels.A Dispatch Facebook post breaking the news of Sunday’s arrests sent up a cheer of public approval.The post was shared 1232 times and reached 160294 people.As state officials on Monday prepared to charge the vessels with a range of crimes and breaches of regulations‚ SA’s Agriculture‚ Forestry and Fisheries (Daff) Minister‚ Senzeni Zokwana‚ issued a stern warning that the “capture” of the vessels was a sign of more action to come.The minister said the country would no longer tolerate the plunder of its marine resources.In a joint statement‚ the SA National Defence Force‚ (SANDF)‚ Daff and the SA Maritime Safety Authority (Samsa) said a combined patrol had to finally board and seize control of the two Chinese vessels.The Run Da had been trying to reach open ocean by steaming through the middle of the operation‚ but was boarded‚ found with 200 tons of allegedly illegal chokka‚ and ordered to join the convoy.The three ships arrived under Daff and navy escort and berthed in port soon after 8pm on Sunday night.The SAS Drakensberg was seen at dawn on Monday riding its anchor off East London‚ guarding the port entrance.From early Sunday night until 3am on Monday‚ police‚ SARS‚ customs‚ home affairs and Samsa officials sifted through the vessels finding 340 tons of chokka on the Fu Yuan Yu 7880 and 60 tons on Fu Yang Yu 7881.The Indonesian crew on the shambolic deck of Run Da 617 looked shocked‚ but the Chinese crew on their two-year-old vessels carried on working‚ dismantling metal baskets on some 110 winch-driven lines‚ each carrying an array of powerful lights.In their joint statement‚ the departments said that on Friday‚ their monitoring system picked up two Chinese long-liners with fishing gear and no fishing permits nor permission to enter the SA exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Radio instructions to the vessels to head for port resulted in the vessels racing away and the SA forces having to race to twice intercept them.Naval officers and inspectors had to finally board and capture them‚ the statement said.Fish and chokka were found in the multiple below-deck fridges.An array of charges are being contemplated against the vessels‚ which include not complying with lawful instructions and infringing conservation measures.Thobile Gqabu‚ principal officer at the centre for fishing‚ said they were investigating crew safety‚ a pollution threat‚ vessel safety standards and “all related matters in terms of international conventions as well as South African maritime law”.SANDF spokesman Siphiwe Dlamini said the navy would “protect the resources and the territorial integrity of the republic”...

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