Greenpeace presentation to the FAO Committee on Fisheries: "IUU Fishing Exposing the system and loopholes that keep pirates plundering the oceans". March 2009.

1. IUU fishing on trial
Exposing the system and
loopholes that keep pirates
plundering the oceans
FAO Committee on Fisheries
Rome, 5th March 2009

2. IUU fishing levels remain too high
 8 years after the FAO IPOA
 Estimations suggest that between 11-19% of the
global catch is derived from IUU activities
 Overcapacity and shrinking resources exacerbate
the problem – very little progress in capacity
reduction

3. FAO IPOA on IUU fishing
 Key instrument but voluntary
 Progress has been slow
 Little use of regional plans of action

4. Regional Fisheries Bodies
 Different degrees of performance
 Not equally efficient when IUU fishing is
carried out by CPs
 Lack of communication between RFBs

5. Main loopholes
 Transshipments and resupplying of vessels – lack
of controls over non-fishing vessels
 Re-flagging – lack of vessels traceability
 Weak port controls, granting of port services
other than offloading
 Irresponsible flag states

6. Main loopholes
 Measures against vessels but not against
nationals or companies
 Poor communication between governments and
organizations
 Lack of will to put time and resources on the issue

7. The case of Vidal Armadores S.A.
Over one decade in business
 Operating a fleet in the Southern Ocean in the
late 90's
 The Camouco (Panama) – Arvisa I (Uruguay) –
Eternal (Netherlands Antilles)
 The hot pursuit of the Viarsa I (Uruguay)
 Still operating a fleet today!

8. Antonio Vidal Pego
Problems with the justice
 Indicted in the US in
September 2005, for importing
26 t of PTF and falsifying
documents
 Pleaded guilty in November
2006 and was placed on
probation for 4 years.

9. The Paloma V
Illegal activities documented
 Tried to offload 98
t. of Patagonian
toothfish in
Auckland, in May
2008
 Owned by a
Namibian joint
venture
 Inspection proved
it had been
involved in IUU
operations and
was controlled by
Vidal Armadores

10. The Paloma V
Illegal activities documented
 Transshiping
with the
blacklisted
Chilbo San 33 on
8 August 2007
 Transshipping
with the
blacklisted Black
Moon on 18
November 2007

11. The Paloma V
Links to Vidal Armadores S.A
 Invoices on-board established
very clearly that the ship as
supplied by Vidal Armadores
in Spain

12. The Paloma V
Links to Vidal Armadores S.A
 The owner was a
Namibian joint
venture between a
Namibian company
and Mabenal S.A,
based in Uruguay

13. The Paloma V
Links to Vidal Armadores S.A
 Mabenal is 100%
by Vidal
Armadores S.A.

14. The Paloma V
Links to Vidal Armadores S.A
 Emails on board
confirmed that the
company is operated by
Vidal and further
indicate that he
operates a fleet

15. The Paloma V
Legal and illegal
vessels cooperate
 Fleet online view
 The Spanish flagged
Galaecia and Belma are
included together with
blacklisted vessels

16. The Paloma V
Spanish nationals
involved
 Crew list
 Lack of use of
legislation
against nationals
 The case of
Antonio García
Pérez

17. The Paloma V
Spanish nationals
involved
 Lack of use of
legislation against
nationals
 The case of Antonio
García Pérez

18. The Paloma V
Spanish nationals involved
 There is
enough
evidence

19. The Black Moon
Illegal activities documented
 Involved in a long list of IUU
operations between October
2005 and May 2006
 Confirmed gillnet fishing
operations

20. The Black Moon
Illegal activities documented
 Just between October 2005
and 24 April 2006 the
vessel was involved in joint
operations with nine fishing
vessels, eight of which were
blacklisted

21. The Black Moon
Illegal activities documented

22. The Black Moon
Links to Vidal Armadores S.A.

23. The Black Moon
Continuously renaming and reflagging
 Dorita (Uruguay)
 Magnus (St
Vincent&Gren)
 Thule (Eq. Guinea)
 Eolo (Eq. Guinea)
 Red Moon (N Korea)
 Black Moon (N Korea)
 Ina Maka (N Korea)
 Galaxy (N Korea)

24. Vidal Armadores S.A.
a highly subsidised company

25. Vidal Armadores
The case of the
Galaecia
 Alleged transhipment with the
Magnus (the Blackmoon) and the
Hammer in August 2004.
 Reported by the observer on-
board.
 Should a vessel belonging to this
operator been licensed and
subsidized to carry out 'scientific
research'?

26. Vidal Armadores
The case of the
Galaecia
 Complaints in CCAMLR
about the granting of a
license to the Galaecia for
an exporatory fishery
 The Galaecia and the Belma
were licensed in the IOTC
area in 2006 and 2007

27. The end of the
Galaecia
Pirates to the rescue
 The Galaecia caught fire
on July 2008 and the crew
was rescued by the
Galaxy, which is actually
the same vessel as the
Black Moon.
 Even here the vessels on
the screenshot show to
be operating together

28. The case of the Belma
Charters for Vidal's vessels
 ICCAT convention area 2008

29. A fleet still operative in the Southern Ocean
 Crew swapping
vessels
 The list of
vessels
operated by
Vidal may be
longer: Duero,
Cetan, ...

30. Good progress could be achieved in 2009
 A strong Port State Agreement
 First steps of a global record of fishing vessels
 Progress in addressing nationals and
companies
 Need for an investigation – GP took action this
morning
 Strengthen regional cooperation
 Capacity reduction?