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Chile jubilant as FAO pioneers illegal fishing treaty

Xinhua, June 7, 2016 Adjust font size:

Chile on Monday hailed the signing of the Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) agreement against illegal fishing, calling it "a proud moment for our country."

Barbados, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Guyana, St. Kitts and Nevis and Uruguay all signed the FAO agreement against illegal fishing, which came into force on Sunday and is legally binding in the 29 signatory countries and the European Union.

Raul Sunico, Chile's under-secretary for fishing and agriculture, issued a press release on Monday, saying "it is a proud moment for our country to have actively participated in the...FAO negotiations, which resulted in the agreement's first version in 2009. We ratified in 2012 and have been awaiting its entry into force, which could only be done with the support of 25 members."

"Our country was pioneer in this type of controls...for the use of national ports for foreign fishing boats. This policy was amplified in 2009 to foreign boats...which illegally operate in high seas. Our national service for fishing and agriculture is in charge of fiscal compliance for every foreign fishing boat entering our national ports," said Sunico.

The agreement seeks to prevent and eliminate illegal, undeclared and unregulated fishing and is the first international treaty to be fully focused on this problem.

FAO director-general Jose Graziano da Silva lauded it "a great day for our permanent efforts to reach sustainable fishing to help feed the world."

At the 34th Regional Conference of the FAO in March in Mexico City, Latin American and Caribbean countries asked for the organization's help in fighting against illegal fishing.

The FAO is currently leading a project with the fishing authorities of Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru and the Dominican Republic to examine the impact of illegal fishing in these countries.

Alejandro Flores, the FAO's head of fishing and agriculture, said this project "would improve fishing surveillance, monitoring and control processes and safeguard the way of life and food sources of local communities while contributing to the conservation of maritime ecosystems."

Boats suspected of carrying out illegal, undeclared and unregulated fishing could be denied entry into ports or be granted access upon permission of inspection.

These boats would have to prove that they have authority to fish from the country whose flag they fly and the country in whose water they are fishing.

If inspections detect any problems, the information will be sent to the ship's country of origin for sanctions and will be listed as part of a central database shared by the treaty signatories. Endit