Ship-borne activists said yesterday they had targeted fishing boats from South Korea, Taiwan and the US in high-seas protests against the “plundering” of tuna in the Pacific.
In the latest confrontation, crew from the Greenpeace ship Esperanza boarded a Taiwanese boat, the Nian Sheng 3, to inspect the catch and then escorted the boat out of international waters, a spokesman said.
The captain of the tuna boat, which also contained hundreds of frozen shark fins and tails, allowed the activists to board, Greenpeace campaign leader Lagi Toribau said by telephone from the Esperanza.
PHOTO: AFP
“Greenpeace are not a violent campaigning organization,” he said, while adding that the activists were prepared to “interfere with their physical fishing activities in order for us to save the last tuna stocks.”
On Sunday, Esperanza crew members set out to a small boat to paint the side of a US vessel, Cape Finisterre, with the words “Tuna Overkill” and asked it to leave international waters, Greenpeace said in a statement.
Last Thursday the group protested alongside the South Korean ship Olympus before activists “confiscated a fish aggregation device” used to attract tuna.
The latest action took place in international waters near the Solomon Islands where “legal fishers and pirates are both plundering Pacific tuna,” Greenpeace said.
Describing tuna as the world’s favorite fish, Toribau said “advances in technology mean large ships are now able to catch as much fish in two days as the fishers of the small Pacific island countries can catch in a year.”
The future of the comparatively healthy western and central Pacific tuna fishery is crucial for small Pacific states. Tuna is the only major economic resource for many, as well as one of the most important food sources.
Currently license fees provide Pacific states a small return of around 5 percent to 6 percent of the US$3 billion annual catch in the region.
Toribau said the fishing carried out by the ships “is technically not illegal but is unregulated,” and Greenpeace was campaigning for the pockets of international waters between the island nations to be declared marine reserves.
The Esperanza was heading for a stopover in the Solomon Islands before returning to international waters to continue the protests, Toribau said.
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
RSS