The Peruvian government is increasing control and monitoring of the Chinese fishing fleet sailing off its coasts to strengthen the fight against illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, focusing especially on squid, Peru’s Ministry of Production (PRODUCE) indicated in early July.
“The movements of the Chinese fishing fleet in Peru to catch squid in the Pacific began in 2017. A year later it finished consolidating with almost 300 vessels [and] added refrigerated cargo ships to store and transport the fish caught,” Milko Schvartzman, Oceans and Fisheries project coordinator at Argentine nongovernmental organization (NGO) Círculo de Políticas Ambientales, told Diálogo on August 11.
In August 2020, Peru introduced a regulation requiring foreign vessels using its ports to have an extra satellite device so authorities could better track their movements before they entered, environmental news site Mongabay reported. While the decision was welcomed, Chinese vessels continued to enter Peruvian ports, to change crews, renew documents, or fuel up, without the additional satellite device.
Many Chinese vessels that entered Peru’s ports following this regulation did so under an emergency entry, that is due to a medical or mechanical emergency or an accident. The issue raised suspicions among experts who believe the Chinese vessels have been seeking to avoid the extra surveillance.
Chinese vessels fishing illegally in Peru’s waters have also been reported. As recently as May, Chinese vessel Tian Xiang was caught fishing illegally in Peru’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and was fined an amount that the Peruvian fishing sector described as “laughable,” Argentine news site Pescare reported.
PRODUCE Minister Sergio González soon announced that his administration has been working on an emergency decree to improve control and supervision of fishing activities, Pescare reported. Vessels will be required to have their satellite tracking system and their satellite positioning operational for the last six months before their request for access to jurisdictional waters is to be reviewed.
In mid-July, artisanal fishermen from the Peruvian Port of Paita, in Piura, protested on the high seas what they perceived as government authorities’ lack of regulation and control over Chinese vessels illegal activities at sea, Argentine news sites Infobae, reported. According to the report, the Chinese fishing vessels were observed for several days operating in an area that is not permitted in the bay.
“Following regulations put in place years ago by Peruvian authorities to control IUU fishing, the movement of Chinese vessels decreased,” Schvartzman said. “But between 2023 and 2024, their increased presence was detected, essentially in small ports or bays in northern Peru, to avoid controls.”
NGO Peruvian Society of International Law expressed its concern about the illegal entry of Chinese fishing vessels into Peruvian waters, because of detrimental repercussions to the environment and local fishermen, EFE reported.
According to Infobae, the artisanal fishermen told local media Albricias TV that fishing is seriously affected due to the amount of squid that the foreign industrial ships collect in the waters of Paita, since in a single day these vessels obtain what a local artisanal fisherman catches in a year. In addition, Chinese fishing is carried out indiscriminately, catching squid of all sizes and ages and other species that they discard.
“The Chinese fleet threatens the food security of communities that depend on fishery resources and affects the livelihood of those engaged in artisanal fishing,” Schvartzman said.
As a preventive measure, PRODUCE assured on August 3 that it is monitoring Chinese vessels that announced their arrival in the ports of Chimbote and Callao, in order to firmly follow up and supervise their fishing activities, in compliance with national and international regulations, guaranteeing the protection of natural resources.
In addition, the Peruvian Navy, through the General Directorate of Captaincy and Coast Guard, is conducting ongoing control and surveillance of Chinese vessels in Peruvian waters since July, news site Infodefensa reported.
“It must be understood and put on alert that squid is the most caught species in the Pacific in the summer season, which causes a serious environmental problem because this mollusk is consumed by almost all ocean species, from whales to birds,” Schvartzman said.
According to international news site Undercurrent News, so far in 2024, 70 foreign vessels arrived in Peru, mainly Chinese, many of them with a history of illegal fishing and human rights abuses.
“It was verified that the crew of the Chinese vessels, for the most part, is composed of Filipinos and Indonesians, who are in semi-slavery conditions, due to the fact that they are embarked without health and safety standards,” Schvartzman said.
According to an investigation by the Peruvian NGO ArtisOnal, Chinese vessel Zhe Pu Yuan 98 has been operating as a floating hospital for sick or injured crew members of Chinese fishing vessels in the Pacific Ocean. The vessel operates unlawfully, and as a hospital ship can bypass port inspections. In the last three years, the Zhe Pu Yuan 98 disembarked 37 crew members, all seriously ill and one deceased, in the port of Callao, Peru, think tank Andrés Bello Foundation indi
“With the aim of satisfying its domestic demand, China causes an imbalance in marine ecosystems, increasing risks for endangered species, increasing pollution of the seas and damaging the economy of the affected countries, so the different governmental actors, NGOs, and civil society, must become aware of this situation,” concluded Schvartzman.
