Boat faces international ban for illegal Antarctic fishing

Jul 8, 2008, 7:47 GMT

Wellington - A ship which docked in a New Zealand port with fish caught illegally in Antarctic waters could be banned by 34 countries after losing a court bid to keep its actions secret, it was announced on Tuesday.

A New Zealand government statement said that the Paloma V would be reported to the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) and could be blacklisted by all its 34 members.

Court records show the ship docked at Auckland on May 16 with 98 tons of Antarctic toothfish and Fisheries Minister Jim Anderton said information was found linking it to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

'The boat's computer records revealed that it had contact with known illegal fishing vessels and had resupplied them at sea,' he said.

The Paloma V's owners, Omunkete Fishing (Pty) Ltd, asked the High Court to stop the government from notifying CCAMLR and seeking its blacklisting.

The records show that the boat, which flies the Namibia flag, is a Uruguay joint venture of Mabenal SA and Gongola Fishing (Pty) Limited and controlled by a Spanish company, Vidal Armadones.

New Zealand authorities were unable to detain the ship, which sailed for Namibia with its cargo on May 24, but the High Court threw out the owners bid for secrecy on Tuesday.

Anderton said the recommendation to blacklist Paloma V would now be considered at CCAMLR's annual meeting in October.

'We need to stamp out illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing,' Anderton said. 'It is wreaking havoc with fish stock sustainability and damaging the environment.'