Illegal fishing trawler seized off Liberia

Stealing fish from West Africa
September 2011: A fishing boat believed to be illegally catching and supplying fish stolen from West Africa to the European Union has been seized by Liberian authorities.

The Liberian Coastguard, backed by the Bureau for National Fisheries and US Coastguard, has made its first fishing vessel seizure following the dramatic chase of Korean-flagged trawler the Seta 70, fishing illegally within their waters.

Chased down The Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), which has been investigating illegal fishing activities of the Seta 70 since 2008, has received reports from Liberian authorities that the Liberian Coastguard (LCG) chased down and seized the trawler at the end of July after it was caught fishing illegally in inshore areas reserved for local fishermen.

The Seta 70, owned by a Korean multinational company which has offices in the Canary Islands and owns a luxury golf resort on the Spanish mainland, tried to avoid capture by steering erratically and turning off its lights during the night. A Liberian government fisheries observer on board was reportedly stopped from using communication equipment by the vessel's captain. He was reportedly able to raise the alarm by making a call on his mobile phone while hidden in a toilet.

Catching fish for lucrative European marketThe pursuit came to an end when Liberian authorities fired warning shots before boarding the vessel and bringing it to the country's capital Monrovia. Earlier this year, the Environmental Justice Foundation documented several vessels, including the Seta 70, fishing illegally in neighbouring Sierra Leone.

The vessels were catching fish for the highly lucrative European and Asian seafood markets and their illegal activities included fishing in inshore areas, destroying local fishermen's nets, concealing their markings and attacking a local fisherman.

Evidence collected by EJF on these vessels' activities was provided to European authorities, leading in April 2011 to the seizure of an estimated £4 million worth of fish in the Spanish port of Las Palmas. This was the largest seizure since the EU introduced a new regulation to end illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in January 2010.

Investigations underwayThe consignment of suspected illegally caught fish was released to the market by Spanish authorities, following months of meetings between port authorities, fishing companies and fish processors. In Spanish media, Korean fishing companies were reported to have threatened to leave the port of Las Palmas if controls on imports of fish from West Africa were not loosened. So far, Spanish authorities and the European Commission have not commented on the release of the illegal fish, which is now circulating within EU markets.

The Seta 70 is still under arrest in Monrovia while investigations of the vessel's activities are ongoing. Meanwhile, the Liberian government has requested that European authorities ensure that none of the illegal vessels' catch is able to enter the European seafood market.

Steve Trent, executive director of EJF says: ‘The Spanish government must urgently review its decision to allow the import of fish from the Seta 70 and other vessels that are stealing fish from some of the poorest people on the planet. Weak port controls in Las Palmas mean that European consumers are unwittingly fuelling pirate fishing, a practice that devastates coastal communities, compromises food security and destroys marine environments.'
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