Illegal fishing penalties put in force
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ILLEGAL fishing vessels and equipment will be seized or destroyed and vessel owners could be jailed for up to five years under a new order by the National Council for Peace and Order, issued under section 44 of interim constitution.
The fines for such offences will range between Bt100,000 and Bt500,000.
People in the fisheries industry have complained that the law has been implemented too fast and warned that many operators will be forced to close, which will cause damage to the sector.
Monkol Sukcharenkana, vice president of the Thailand Fishery Association, said that many fishing operators could not adapt to the law in time because it was introduced so quickly.
“Many trawlers have a mesh smaller than 5 centimetres, so we need time to comply with the new standard. Luckily, the CCCIF [Command Centre for Combating Illegal Fishing] gave us 90 days to replace them with larger nets,” Monkol said.
“However, I still fear that with that large mesh, fishermen will catch far less fish, which may bankrupt many fishing operators, as there is a large operational cost when we go out on sea,” he said.
Monkol said he knew the government had shown goodwill by enforcing a strict law to protect marine animal resources, but he believed the punishment was too severe and many fishermen would suffer because they do not understand the law.
“I fear many fishing operators cannot tolerate this new order and many will have to shut their business and find another job,” he said.
Order 24/2558 was published in the Royal Gazette on Thursday and is already in effect.
It clarifies previous CCCIF measures and designates the penalties for offences in order to support policies aimed at tackling illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing by Thai vessels.
The order said that after junta leader Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha issued an order to tackle IUU fishing and set up the CCCIF in April 29, illegal fishing and over-fishing were still impacting heavily on aquatic animal resources.
It said the junta, therefore, had to limit the number fishing vessels in the country and forbid the use of destructive fishing equipment by using the power granted to it under section 44 of the 2014 Interim Constitution.
The order also forbids authorities from registering more fishing vessels until further notice and demands that they crack down on operators using illegal fishing equipment – push nets, fishing net traps, anchovy dip nets on light boats and set-bag nets.
Otter trawlers are still allowed but they must use a mesh larger than 5cm. The order allows CCCIF to inspect vessels and police the authority to punish offenders.
