International non-governmental organization EJF released a report at the beginning of 2024, exposing illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing activities by Chinese distant-water fishing vessels in the southwestern Indian Ocean, as well as human rights violations including the exploitation of crew members.
According to a report by Deutsche Welle on Friday, May 3, China possesses the world’s largest and most numerous distant-water fishing fleet, yet the Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing Index ranks China at the top among 152 countries worldwide.
The Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) conducted a comprehensive examination focusing on the southwestern Indian Ocean coast of East Africa in this report.
EJF interviewed 44 fishermen who had worked on Chinese tuna fishing vessels in the southwestern Indian Ocean. 80% of the interviewees testified that illegal shark finning activities had occurred on the Chinese vessels they worked on, while 59% pointed out deliberate capturing and harming of vulnerable marine megafauna. Some interviewees mentioned, “After catching sharks, they only take the fins and throw the bodies back into the sea.”
The report cited data from the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), indicating that the Indian Ocean is the second-highest fishery production ocean globally, supporting the second-largest tuna industry in the world. Between 2016 and 2021, about 36% of the fishing activities in the southwestern Indian Ocean region may involve IUU fishing, with tuna fishing accounting for as much as 48.7%.
China is not the sole entity responsible for excessive and illegal fishing in the southwestern Indian Ocean but is considered one of the main culprits. The EJF report mentioned Madagascar and Mozambique as the most affected African countries.
Chinese trawlers often collide with and damage the fishing nets of Malagasy fishermen’s small wooden canoes. In Mozambique, fish resources have been decreasing over the past decade, with fishermen experiencing a 30% decline in catches over the last 25 years.
Apart from illegal fishing, China’s distant-water fishing industry is also involved in human rights violations, including the exploitation of crew members. Most Chinese distant-water fishing vessels rely on fishermen from Indonesia and the Philippines. In interviews with 44 fishermen, 100% stated that the working and living conditions on board were harsh, 96% had to work overtime, and 55% reported experiencing physical violence.
According to the interviewed fishermen, “Sometimes we have to work 18 to 19 hours a day, and if there’s a big catch, we might have to work up to 22 hours.” The report revealed that between 2017 and 2023, four crew members were reported dead on Chinese distant-water tuna vessels, including one crew member suspected of committing suicide by jumping overboard.
Dios Aristo Lumban Gaol, coordinator of the Maritime and Legal Analysis Division of the Indonesian Seafarers Union (SBMI), pointed out that some Chinese fishing vessels practice discrimination by providing Chinese crew members with bottled mineral water while Indonesian crew members have to rely on distilled seawater, often leading to health issues. It is common for Indonesian crew members to consume expired, rotten, or spoiled food.
The EJF report identified the top three companies engaged in IUU fishing and human rights violations in the southwestern Indian Ocean as Chinese ventures, including China Lu, Zhejiang Ocean Family, and China Agricultural Development Group.
In response to multiple allegations, the Chinese government has long denied any mismanagement and issued the “China’s Distant-Water Fishing Industry Development White Paper” last year, asserting its commitment to “zero tolerance” towards illegal fishing and implementing “the world’s most stringent vessel monitoring and control measures” for distant-water fishing vessels.
The report also mentioned that China’s distant-water fishing industry, as a crucial part of the “blue economy,” has received significant support from the Chinese government, particularly through fuel subsidies.