Taiwanese distant-water fishing vessels have once again been accused of shark finning and killing vulnerable marine animals, and migrant crew members have complained of frequent physical violence, the UK-based Environmental Justice Foundation said in a report earlier this week.
Following its report about illegal activities on the Fuh Sheng No. 11 (福甡11號) published in September, the foundation on Wednesday released another investigative report about five other fishing vessels flying the Republic of China flag or owned by Taiwanese.
The crew on all five boats have said they were ordered to remove shark fins and throw the rest of the animals overboard, the foundation said, adding that some were also asked to illegally catch dolphins and use their meat as shark bait.
It also released a nine-minute film, titled Slaughter at Sea: Dolphins, Turtles and Sharks: Illegal Fishing on Taiwanese Longliners, featuring interviews with the migrant crew members in Indonesia last month.
They would spear or electrocute dolphins swimming alongside boats, as the animals’ blood attracts sharks, a crew member said in the film.
When they caught a turtle, they usually released it “unless the captain asked for turtle’s tail,” given its purported medicinal effects, a fisher said.
To evade inspections by Taiwanese officials, captains ordered the crew to hide shark fins at the bottom of freezers and cover them with other fish, the foundation said.
Many crew members also reported physical violence and debt bondage, it added.
“These illegal, unsustainable and brutally cruel activities are being enabled by the Taiwanese authorities’ failure to act,” foundation executive director Steve Trent said, urging Taiwan to end the abuses, and create legal, sustainable and ethical fisheries.
Photographs and footage provided by the foundation do not show any specific vessels, and the testimonies of the migrant crew are difficult to confirm, the Fisheries Agency said on Wednesday, but added that it would probe the matter.
Since the Act for Distant Water Fisheries (遠洋漁業條例) took effect last year, the agency has tightened regulation of the industry and issued fines, it said, calling on environmental groups to affirm that most Taiwanese fishers obey the law.
Management of Taiwan’s distant-sea fishing fleets is a thorny issue for the government, as heavy fines for illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities have triggered a protest by fishers last month, the largest-ever so far.
Some consider the heavy punishments to be one of the factors that contributed to the Democratic Progressive Party’s losses in the Nov. 24 elections.
Taiwan moved clear of Mexico to be the only country at No. 2 in the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Men’s Baseball World Rankings. Meanwhile, draft bills to set up a ministry of sports were approved at a joint session at the legislature in Taipei yesterday. After previously being tied with Mexico for second on 4,118 points, Taiwan moved clear on 5,498 points after they defeated Japan in the final of the WBSC Premier12 tournament on Sunday. Mexico (4,729) dropped to fourth, behind Venezuela (4,846), who finished fourth at the tournament. Taiwan narrowed the gap to first-placed Japan to 1,368 points from 1,638, WBSC
GLOBAL SUPPORT: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the motion highlighted the improper exclusion of Taiwan from international discussion and cooperative mechanisms Taiwan yesterday thanked the British parliament for passing a motion stating that UN Resolution 2758 does not involve Taiwan, making it the latest body to reject China’s interpretation of the resolution. The House of Commons on Thursday debated the international status of Taiwan and unanimously passed a pro-Taiwan motion stating that the House “notes that UN Resolution 2758 does not address the political status of Taiwan or establish PRC [People’s Republic of China] sovereignty over Taiwan and is silent both on the status of Taiwan in the UN and on Taiwanese participation in UN agencies.” British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Parliamentary
HIGH ALERT: The armed forces are watching for a potential military drill by China in response to the president’s trip, with the air force yesterday conducting an exercise President William Lai (賴清德) is to make stopovers in Hawaii and the US territory of Guam during his seven-day trip to the South Pacific, his first official visit since taking office in May, the Presidential Office said yesterday. Lai, accompanied by a delegation, is scheduled to depart for the South Pacific on a chartered flight at 4:30pm tomorrow, stopping first in Hawaii for a two-night layover before traveling to the Marshall Islands, an office official said. After wrapping up his visits to the Marshall Islands and Tuvalu, the president is to transit through Guam, spending a night there before flying to Palau,
‘IMPORTANCE OF PEACE’: President Lai was welcomed by AIT Managing Director Ingrid Larson, Hawaii Governor Josh Green, Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi and others President William Lai (賴清德) was feted with red carpets, garlands of flowers and “alohas” as he began his two-day stopover in Hawaii on Saturday, part of a Pacific tour. Looking relaxed in a Hawaiian shirt, Lai flitted around the US island state, visiting the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, Hawaii’s leading museum of natural history and native Hawaiian culture, the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency and the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor. Lai was given the “red carpet treatment” on the tarmac of Honolulu’s international airport, his office said, adding that it was the first time a Taiwanese president had been given such
RSS