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SA joins in poacher chase
18/08/2003 08:11 - (SA)
Sydney - South Africa has joined Australia in the hunt for a South American trawler fleeing sub-Antarctic waters with what is believed to be a valuable cargo of illegally-caught Patagonian toothfish, officials said on Monday.
The customs and fisheries patrol boat Southern Supporter has been in hot pursuit of the Uruguayan-flagged Viarsa since it was spotted inside Australia's fishing zone about 4 000km south-west of the mainland 10 days ago.
The long-line trawler has ignored repeated radio orders to stop and is reported to be fleeing in a westerly direction at maximum speed in a mountainous, freezing ocean, dodging icebergs as it goes.
The stakes are high on both sides: for the Viarsa, a cargo probably worth millions of dollars and for Australian its sovereignty over an area rich in the increasingly endangered but extremely valuable deep sea dwelling toothfish.
But with a second patrol vessel now approaching from South Africa, Australian and South African authorities say they are confident the Viarsa will be caught.
"If there are two vessels it would find it presumably extremely difficult to escape or go further," South Africa's deputy director-general of environment Horst Kleinschmidt told ABC Radio here on Monday.
"The captain on the Viarsa would be told that an action was imminent and that either through siding up to the vessel, or through a helicopter, officials will mount the vessel, that he should subject himself to that, he has no other option, that he would then be accompanied to whatever jurisdiction it is decided she should go to."
Kleinschmidt said that could either be to Australia or, if it was nearer Cape Town, to South Africa.
"If he resists that, which we would think unlikely, then of course the crew know that they face criminal charges and extradition issues in many other countries," he added.
"We think in normal circumstances our doing something together with the Australian vessel we would in fact succeed to conduct apprehension."
Kleinschmidt said the South African vessel was not armed but inspectors carried hand guns.
"The very fact that people do this and would in the process presumably forfeit their vessel and its contents shows what price some markets will pay for its contents and that is untenable," he said.
Australian Fisheries Minister Ian McDonald said Australia has also been involved in diplomatic discussions with Uruguay which has agreed to cooperate by taking action against the Viarsa if it becomes possible.
- AFP
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