Three Chinese ships – Fu Yuan Yu 7880, Fu Yang Yu 7881 and Run Da 617 have been intercepted and held for inspection by the department of agriculture, forestry and fisheries (DAFF) and the South African Navy.
In a joint statement DAFF and the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) said on Monday: “We established that the vessels had gear on board and we verified that they had not applied to enter into our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and that created suspicion”.
The statement added: “The seas were rough which made it impossible for our inspectors to board the vessels. Our Fishery Control Officers instructed the vessels through radio communication to sail to East London Port but they did not cooperate.
“DAFF’s patrol vessel and SA NAVY Vessel had to increase speed in order to intercept the foreign fishing vessels which were speeding off, but managed to intercept them.”
Inspections were conducted on two of the Chinese vessels whereby fish and gear was found on both foreign vessels, both with no permits. The vessels were again instructed to sail to the nearest port which was East London.
“We established that the vessels had gear on board and we verified that they had not applied to enter into our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and that created suspicion. The seas were rough which made it impossible for our inspectors to board the vessels. Our Fishery Control Officers instructed the vessels through radio communication to sail to East London Port but they did not cooperate.
Enroute to East London, South African authorities intercepted another vessel crossing “in between the fleet going in a different direction,”. After an inspectors went on board they found out that the vessel did not have any permit .
The Fu Yuan Yu 7880 was found with about 340 tons of squid with 36 crew, the Fu Yang Yu 7881 had about 60 tons of squid with 34 crew and the Run Da 617 about 200 tons of squid and other species of fish with 26 crew.
All the Fish holding cabins have been sealed off as required by investigation standards. As part of further investigations of the vessels, all fish will be taken out of the vessels for further identification, counting and weighing.
The statement said the owners of the ships faced possible charges that include, possession of Gear on board without a Gear Permit, not complying with the Lawful Instruction from the Fishery Control Officer and possible infringements in terms the International Conservation and Management Measures inside or outside South African waters.
“The capturing of these vessels indicates our seriousness as a country to protect our territorial and exclusive economic zone. We cannot tolerate the plundering of our Marine Resources, which are a source of food security and play a huge role in realising our goals in Operation Phakisa. We are also looking into the sudden influx of these vessels in our waters,” said Senzeni Zokwana, the SA minister of agriculture, forestry and fisheries.
The South African Maritime Safety Authority would conduct a survey of the vessels.
“The inspection will consider crew safety, pollution threat, vessel safety standards and all related matters in terms of International conventions as well as South African Maritime Law” said Thobile Gqabu, the principal officer at the Centre for Fishing in East London.
Siphiwe Dlamini, head of communication at the South African Defence Force said: “The mandate of the South African National Defence Force and in particular the South African Navy is to ensure that we protect the maritime routes and the resources of our country as we protect the territorial integrity of the Republic”.
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