More than 100 miles from shore, near the coast of West Africa, I accompanied marine police officers from Gambia as they arrested 15 foreign ships for labor violations and illegal fishing over the course of a week in 2019. All but one of the vessels arrested were from China. At [ … ]
China
Chilean Navy Increases Surveillance Due to Chinese Fishing Fleet’s Threat
As the massive Chinese fishing fleet continues to advance, with practices of illegal and indiscriminate exploitation of maritime resources sparking concern on the Pacific coast of South America, the Chilean Navy has implemented a heavy surveillance protocol in December 2020. On December 14, the Chilean Navy’s General Directorate of the [ … ]
The Dire Effects of Illegal Fishing
Illegal fishing poses a severe threat to the economies, environment, and security of Pacific Rim nations, according to the U.S. Coast Guard and a new report in the journal Science Advances. The report, Illuminating Dark Fishing Fleets in North Korea, highlights the risks of illegal fishing in the Pacific Rim. [ … ]
Representatives from SOUTHCOM, US Coast Guard, Attend IUU Fishing Conference
Over the last few years illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing has become widely recognized as a national security issue. According to the U.S. Coast Guard’s (USCG) 2020 Strategic Outlook, IUU has replaced piracy as the leading global maritime security threat. At the IUU Fishing Conference hosted by Florida International [ … ]
People to Late Wuhan Whistleblower: You Were Wronged
The physician in Wuhan, China, who sounded the alarm about a budding pandemic only to be rebuked by Chinese authorities, continued to elicit an outpouring of admiration as the one-year anniversary of his death approached. Dr. Li Wenliang died February 7, 2020, after contracting the illness he warned classmates about [ … ]
South American States Join Forces Against Chinese Fishing Threat
Four South American countries joined forces November 4 in a bid to combat illegal fishing by huge Chinese fleets off their coasts. Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru threatened measures “to prevent, discourage and jointly confront” illegal fishing near their exclusive economic zones in the Pacific. The joint statement made no [ … ]
Illegal Fishing Degrades the Environment
Around the world, illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing not only destroys local economies but also the environment. “IUU and unsustainable fishing affects us right here in the Western Hemisphere,” Jon Piechowski, deputy assistant secretary for the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. State Department said on October [ … ]
Chinese Fleet Threatens Chilean, Argentine Maritime Resources
After plundering the marine fauna near the Galapagos Islands, in Ecuador, a gigantic fleet of Chinese fishing vessels is heading toward southern waters, threatening the ecosystems of Chile and Argentina. The nearly 300 industrial vessels that fish for squid (known as jiggers), are 60 to 80 meters long and have [ … ]
China Extends Its Predatory Loans Tactic to the Caribbean
China offers predatory loans that lead countries to become over-indebted, makes seemingly disinterested donations, and its companies make large infrastructure investments. This tactic is not new, and the Asian nation uses it to expand its influence in strategic areas around the world. The goal is always the same: to create [ … ]
China Continues to Plunder South American Pacific Ocean
In November, the Peruvian government passed a decree ordering all foreign-flagged vessels operating in Peruvian waters to use an additional satellite device starting January 1, 2021. This will enable authorities to know the routes and movements of each vessel with greater precision. On October 18, Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Luis Gallego [ … ]
Do Latin American Waters Continue to Fall Prey to China’s Fishing?
On October 13, I presented work on foreign deepwater fishing fleets in Latin America, to a virtual event held by the highly respected World Commission on Environmental Law (WCEL). The event was held as 340 fishing vessels, mostly Chinese, moved from the Galápagos Islands, where they were believed to have illegally fished in a United Nations World [ … ]
China’s Development Projects Export Environmental Devastation
The People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) state-owned companies are destroying the environment in countries around the world, one corrupt infrastructure project at a time. The PRC is the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases and mercury pollution and the leading consumer of illegal wildlife and timber products. And the PRC’s [ … ]