Foreign fishing vessel breached license condition [1]
Wednesday, May 28, 2014 - 21:12. Updated on Wednesday, May 28, 2014 - 21:13.
A foreign fishing vessel boarded by the Tonga Navy’s VOEA Neiafu patrol boat last week after failing to produce its original fishing license in Tonga, was later released on Monday, May 26.
Lt Commander Sione Lino, Captain of the VOEA Neiafu, told Matangi Tonga today that the fishing boat named Lu Rong Yu 2535, registered in China, had a valid license to fish tuna in Tongan waters.
He said the reason it was boarded was because the owners had breached a condition of its license, when it did not have on board and failed to produce the original copy of its fishing license in Tonga, when they were approached while fishing between Vava’u and Niua waters on the night of Thursday May 22.
“The routine procedure for this kind of situation is that we have a list of names of the foreign fishing boats that have been issued a license to fish in Tonga. Secondly, when we approach them they must show us the original of their fishing license. In this case, we had the vessel’s name on our list, but they did not have the original license,” he said.
Lt Commander Lino said the captain of the Lu Rong Yu 2535 told them that the orginal license was kept at their office in Fiji.
“We are required by law to board the boat and take it to the nearest port, which was Neiafu where it was kept until two things were done. They were to either produce the original fishing license, or a letter was extended from the authority, which was the Minister of Fisheries to the Brigadier-General of HMAF before the vessel can be released.”
He said that the Minister of Fisheries had then submitted a letter to the Brigadier-General noting the violation by this fishing boat of its licensing condition and for it to be released under strict conditions.
He said the Fisheries ordered the boat to take on board a Tongan observer on its fishing trip and to produce to them the original license as soon as possible. “A warning was issued that if they were caught again with this problem they would be prosecuted. The boat was released on Monday around 6:00pm,” he said.
“Foreign fishing vessels licensed to fish in Tonga are required by law to carry their original fishing license at all times, because if copies are produced then boats with the same name can have the same copies….it is just like when you travel abroad you won't turn up with a copy of your passport and be allowed to fly out, you must have your original passport,” he said.
The Lt Commander also confirmed that while the vessel was kept in Neiafu it was held under guard. “Nothing went in or out from the boat,” he said.
The fishing boat had nine crew members who were Chinese and Indonesian nationals.
The boarding of this boat was done while the VOEA Neiafu was taking part in a ten-day maritime surveillance operation 'Tui Moana' to stop illegal fishing across the South Pacific Ocean. The surveillance exercisse ended on Friday 23 May.