Three Illegal Fishing Vessels Arrested: Sea Shepherd Returns to Gabon to Help Protect Africa’s Largest Marine Protected Area
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
10 July 2018
A year after Gabon’s President Ali Bongo Ondimba declared the creation of nine new national marine parks and 11 new aquatic reserves at the United Nations Ocean Conference in New York, the marine conservation group Sea Shepherd has returned to Gabon to assist the government in combatting illegal fishing in what is now Africa’s largest network of marine protected areas.
Operation Albacore III is Sea Shepherd’s third campaign in partnership with the Gabonese government to tackle illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in Central West Africa. Throughout the 2018 tuna fishing season, Gabonese marines (Marine Nationale), inspectors with the Fisheries Enforcement Agency (ANPA) and rangers with the National Agency of National Parks (ANPN) will be stationed on-board Sea Shepherd’s ship, the M/Y Bob Barker, working alongside Sea Shepherd crew to patrol Gabon's sovereign waters. These patrols will provide a vehicle for law enforcement to defend, conserve and protect critical tuna habitat in Central West Africa.
News of the campaign has been officially released after the arrest of two trawlers, the F/V Jin Li 961 and F/V Jin Li 962, fishing illegally in the northern waters of Gabon. The trawlers were detected by the radar of the M/Y Bob Barker as they crossed the border from neighboring Equatorial Guinea to fish in marine reserves protected under Gabonese law. Armed Gabonese navy sailors boarded and secured the two trawlers without injury or incident as enforcement officers from the ANPA and ANPN inspected the vessels, where they discovered a finned tiger shark in the hold of one vessel and evidence of fishing in the Cap Esterias Aquatic Reserve. Both vessels are now detained in the Port of Libreville.
Another vessel, the F/V Hua Yi 5, was arrested earlier near the Congolese border in the Grand Sud du Gabon Aquatic Reserve for fishing in Gabonese waters without a license.
Operation Albacore III aims to defend Gabon’s newly-established marine protected areas, to detect and deter IUU fishing activity while also monitoring legal compliance by licensed fishing operators, and to expand existing monitoring, control and surveillance measures.
The Fight Against IUU Fishing
It’s estimated that between 11 and 26 million tons of fish are caught globally through IUU fishing every year. Developing countries are particularly vulnerable to IUU fishing: up to 40% of the fish caught in West and Central West African waters are caught by criminal operators.
Captain of the M/Y Bob Barker, Sea Shepherd’s Peter Hammarstedt, said, “With new conservation laws and measures comes a need for increased law enforcement, which is why Sea Shepherd is committed to continuing our proud partnership with the government of Gabon to help defend and protect Africa’s largest marine protected area. Gabon is a regional leader in conservation management and it’s a privilege to partner with Gabonese law enforcers on the frontlines of the battle to defend African marine wildlife.”
In 2016 Sea Shepherd partnered with the government of Gabon for the first Operation Albacore, and since then the collaboration has resulted in over 80 fishing vessel inspections at sea and the subsequent arrest of nine illegal fishing vessels.
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Hi-RES press images : https://minerva.seashepherdglobal.org/share.cgi?ssid=0iVmkVU
Footage Reel : https://minerva.seashepherdglobal.org/share.cgi?ssid=0sbz0Aj
Image captions (all images credit Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd):
180607-OA3-TFJ-Boarding No.1-DSCF4072: Gabonese Navy secure the arrested trawler F/V Hua Yi 5. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180608-OA3-TFJ-HUA YI 5-DSCF4759: Gabonese Navy and the M/Y Bob Barker escort the F/V Hua Yi 5 to detention. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180610-OA3-TFJ-Txori Berri-DSCF6676: M/Y Bob Barker assisting Gabonese authorities to monitor fishing activity. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180615-OA3-TFJ-Leconi 6 Bob Barker-DSCF8458: Gabonese Navy secure fishing vessel for inspection. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180617-OA3-TFJ-Txori Berry Fishing whales-DSCF8669: M/Y Bob Barker on fisheries patrol in Gabonese waters. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180703-OA3-TFJ--DSCF2448: Captain Peter Hammarstedt discusses plan with Gabonese law enforcement agent. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180704-OA3-TFJ-Jin Li 961 Fish Hold-DSCF3027: Finned sharks found on board the F/V Jin Li 961. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180704-OA3-TFJ-Jin Li 961-DSCF2758: F/V Jin Li 961 arrested for illegal fishing. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180704-OA3-TFJ-Jin Li 962 Fish Hold-DSCF3048: Juvenile hammerhead sharks discovered on board the F/V Jin Li 962. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180704-OA3-TFJ-Jin Li 962-DSCF2568: F/V Jin Li 962 arrested for illegal fishing. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180704-OA3-TFJ-Jin Li 962-DSCF2731: F/V Jin Li 962 arrested for illegal fishing. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
180706-OA3-TFJ-Crew Photo-DSCF4126: The crew on board the M/Y Bob Barker for Operation Albacore 3. Photo by Tony Fenn James/Sea Shepherd.
More about Operation Albacore: https://www.seashepherdglobal.org/our-campaigns/operation-albacore/
More about Gabon’s new MPAs: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/06/gabon-marine-protected-area-ocean-conservation/
For further information, additional images and interview requests contact:
Heather Stimmler, Sea Shepherd Global Media Director
E-mail: media@seashepherdglobal.org Tel: +339 7719 7742
Sea Shepherd Global
Sea Shepherd is an international non-profit marine conservation movement using innovative tactics and direct action to defend, conserve and protect the worlds oceans and marine wildlife. Founded by Paul Watson in 1977, today Sea Shepherd is a worldwide movement with independent national and regional entities in over 20 countries, united by a common mission and a fleet of eleven ships on campaigns around the world. Sea Shepherd investigates and documents violations of international and national conservation law, and enforces conservation measures where legal authority exists. For more information, visit: http://www.seashepherdglobal.org/
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