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Penguin News.

Falklands remembers the fallen.Falklands remember the fallen on the 19th Anniversary of the liberation of the Falklands from Argentine occupation. More photographs and report in next week's Penguin News.

FCO criticised in Chief Justice's judgement

CHIEF Justice for the Falkland Islands James Wood has levelled criticism at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). Mr Wood found fault with the actions of the FCO within a written judgement on the case, which found the decision by the Director of Fisheries for South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI) not to grant a fishing licence in South Georgia waters to Quark Fishing Limited, to be 'unlawful'. He commented, "In reaching its decision, the Court makes no criticism of the Director of Fisheries regarding his conduct in relation to the licence application... If there is criticism to be levelled, it would perhaps be more appropriately directed towards those in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office who, in my view, unacceptably confused the distinction between the expression of a policy aim, and the proper and fair exercise of the public function of an officer of the Government of South Georgia. "It is clear to me that the FCO expressed a desire to achieve a given object, leaving the Director to implement it without adequate information, and, on the one hand, without proper instruction to grant or refuse licences, and on the other hand without adequate information with which to enable him to reach a fair and rational decision in the exercise of his function in relation to the fishery." It had been alleged during the case that the Director of Fisheries SGSSI had been 'minded' to give Quark Fishing a licence for the current season but had been overruled by the FCO. It was noted in Mr Wood's judgement that the FCO claimed that for sensitive political reasons (relating to CCAMLR membership) it was decided to reduce the allocation of licences to UK flagged vessels and that the two remaining licences intended for UK Overseas Territory vessels should go to those with the best compliance records. The Jacqueline (Quark Fishing's vessel) it was claimed, had a poorer record of compliance with CCAMLR than other vessels and was therefore not granted a licence.

Licence or not?

At the conclusion of the case on June 1, Mr Jarvis was ordered to reconsider (by June 8) his decision not to grant the licence. However, when asked by Penguin