Taiwan was for the second time listed on the US’ biennial report on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, but the report also acknowledged the steps it has taken to remedy the situation, the Fisheries Agency said yesterday.
Taiwan, Angola, Grenada, Mexico, China, the Gambia and Vanuatu were the seven nations and entities accused of engaging in IUU fishing by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in its biennial report to the US Congress on Thursday last week.
Illegal fishing poses a threat to “ocean ecosystems and sustainable fisheries critical to global food and economic security, putting law-abiding fishermen and seafood producers in the United States and abroad at a disadvantage,” the report said.
Photo: CNA
However, Taiwan was certified to have taken actions to tackle the illegal fishing activities identified in the 2021 report, the NOAA added.
In the 2021 report, the NOAA told the US Congress that 11 Taiwanese-owned tuna fishing vessels had contravened regional rules prohibiting shark catching while operating in the Pacific and the Atlantic.
Taiwan was also criticized for not taking sufficient steps to protect sea turtles from bycatch that were commensurate to the changes made by the US to its laws and regulations, the agency said.
However, since then, Taiwan has taken action to combat illegal fishing by investigating the vessels implicated in the previous report, amending fishing guidelines to reduce the harm caused by bycatch and sharing information on the nation’s progress in these matters with the US, it said.
These efforts led to the NOAA’s positive determination that Taiwan was remedying IUU fishing activities carried out by its fishing boats, it said.
On the issue of labor exploitation, the agency said the government was made aware of this problem when the US Department of Labor last year named Taiwan for employing child labor.
Taiwanese officials have scheduled a meeting with their US counterparts to present documentation proving that measures have been taken to tackle the alleged labor abuse described in the US reports, it said.
Taiwan is committed to fighting IUU fishing and protecting workers’ rights in the fishing industry, and will continue to collaborate with the NOAA and US Department of Labor on these matters, and carry out the Action Plan for Fisheries and Human Rights, the agency said.
The fishery industry is urged to comply with international and domestic laws and regulations on fishing and labor rights, especially in light of the passage of laws by the US and EU to exclude those found to have infringed on the standards from their markets and ports, it said.
Additional reporting by CNA
A tropical depression east of the Philippines became a tropical storm early yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, less than a week after a typhoon barreled across the nation. The agency issued an advisory at 3:30am stating that the 22nd tropical storm, named Yinxing, of the Pacific typhoon season formed at 2am. As of 8am, the storm was 1,730km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, with a 100km radius. It was moving west-northwest at 32kph, with maximum sustained winds of 83kph and gusts of up to 108kph. Based on its current path, the storm is not expected to hit Taiwan, CWA
Residents have called on the Taipei City Government to reconsider its plan to demolish a four-decades-old pedestrian overpass near Daan Forest Park. The 42-year-old concrete and steel structure that serves as an elevated walkway over the intersection of Heping and Xinsheng roads is to be closed on Tuesday in preparation for demolition slated for completion by the end of the month. However, in recent days some local residents have been protesting the planned destruction of the intersection overpass that is rendered more poetically as “sky bridge” in Chinese. “This bridge carries the community’s collective memory,” said a man surnamed Chuang
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
A tropical depression east of the Philippines became a tropical storm earlier today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The 22nd tropical storm, named Yinxing, in this year's Pacific typhoon season formed at 2am, the CWA said. As of 8am, the storm was 1,730km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) with a 100km radius, it said. It was moving west-northwest at 32kph, with maximum sustained winds of 83kph and gusts of up to 108kph. Based on its current path, the storm is not expected to hit Taiwan, CWA meteorologist Huang En-hung (黃恩宏) said. However, a more accurate forecast would be made on Wednesday, when Yinxing is