The Fisheries Agency yesterday denied accusations that Taiwan is complicit in overfishing in the western and central Pacific Ocean, saying the building of fishing vessels is strictly controlled by the government and that all newly built fishing vessels are replacements of old boats.
On Friday in Greater Kaohsiung, Greenpeace environmentalists unfurled a large banner that read “Overfishing starts here” in English and “No fish in the ocean, still building more boats” in Chinese, at one of the nation’s largest shipyards.
The group alleged that the Taiwanese government is undermining international fishing agreements and allowing more efficient fishing boats to be built.
Greenpeace said the agency agreed in 2008 to follow the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission’s (WCPFC) advice to limit the number of fishing days for its purse-seine tuna fleets in an effort to help Pacific tuna stocks recover from overfishing. However, it still allows the shipbuilding industry to build bigger ships with larger storage capacity, Greenpeace said.
It said the agency approved 22 new big purse seine ships between 2007 and this year, accumulating a total tonnage of 38,988 tonnes worth of new purse seines boats in five years — five times greater than the the tonnage of Japan, 14 times that of China and 38 times that of South Korea.
The group urged responsible fishery management to end overfishing and to support a global network of marine reserves covering 40 percent of the world’s oceans.
The agency said all shipbuilding operations have been regulated by the government since 1988, and according to the Regulations for the Issuing of Fishing Vessel Building Permit and Fishery License, the right to build a vessel is only granted when an old boat is replaced with a new one of the same tonnage.
The number of purse seiners in Taiwan remains at the level of 34, while about 200 large long line fishing boats of more than 100 tonnages were retired from service between 2005 and 2008, according to the agency’s data.
ENDORSING TAIWAN: Honduran presidential candidate Nasry Afura said that Honduras was ‘100 times better off’ when it was allied with Taipei The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said it would explore the possibility of restoring diplomatic relations with Honduras based on the principle of maintaining national interests and dignity. The ministry made the remarks in response to reporters’ questions regarding an article titled: “Will Taiwan Regain a Diplomatic Ally?” published in The Diplomat on Saturday. The article said Honduras’ presidential election in November could offer Taiwan the chance to regain an ally, as multiple candidates have promoted re-establishing diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Honduras severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in March 2023 in favor of Beijing, but since switching its diplomatic recognition,
A fourth public debate was held today about restarting the recently decommissioned Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant, ahead of a referendum on the controversial issue to be held in less than two weeks. A referendum on Aug. 23 is to ask voters if they agree that “the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant should continue operations upon approval by the competent authority and confirmation that there are no safety concerns.” Anyone over 18 years of age can vote in the referendum. The vote comes just three months after its final reactor shut down, officially making Taiwan nuclear-free. Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) represented
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The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday announced a ban on all current and former government officials from traveling to China to attend a military parade on Sept. 3, which Beijing is to hold to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War. "This year marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and the Republic of China’s victory in the War of Resistance [Against Japan]," MAC Deputy Minister and spokesperson Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) told a regular news briefing in Taipei. To prevent Beijing from using the Sept. 3 military parade and related events for "united
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