MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

John Cheek fined US 400.000 for illegal fishing

The owners of the Falkland Island flagged fishing vessel “John Cheek” pleaded guilty of fishing illegally in Argentine territorial waters and were fined US 400.000 according to the Argentine press.

The reports, later confirmed to Mercopress by the Argentine Fisheries Department, earlier this week after the owners of the vessel, Petrel Trawling Limited of Stanley, paid the 1.2 million peso (US 400.000) fine they signed a document in which they "unconditionally abide by the ruling", thus accepting the determination of the fine.

The Falklands' flagged fishing vessel was detained last February 20 by the Argentine Coast Guard on the grounds that it was operating in Argentine waters, although the captain of the vessel insisted that he was in international waters when the incident occurred.

Petrel Trawling had originally said that the vessel was operating in international waters when it was stopped and boarded by an Argentine Coast Guard vessel and was ordered to proceed to Comodoro Rivadavia on the mainland. According to the Argentine Coast Guard the John Cheek was boarded after having been detected within the Argentine Exclusive economic Zone 198 nautical miles to the southeast of the Patagonian port of Comodoro Rivadavia.

During the enquiry the Argentine Coast Guard submitted the recording of the radio exchanges with the Coast Guard cutter Fique at the time in which the Spanish Captain of the John Cheek, Jaime Cortizo, gives his position "proving conclusively that he was in Argentine waters" according to local sources.

At the time it was detained the John Cheek was manned with a mixed Chilean, Peruvian and Spanish crew of 31, and was carrying 100 tons of squid and hake according to the Argentine Coast Guard report.

The incident highlights the continued tension between Argentina and Britain over the disputed Falklands / Malvinas islands. According to an Argentine Foreign Ministry official consulted by Mercopress, this incident highlights not only the "illegal" fishing by a Falkland Islands flagged vessel, a flag that is not recognised by Argentina, but of "the continued disregard demonstrated by the British government who, despite knowing that the John Cheek had been caught clearly in Argentine EEZ waters continued insisting that it was fishing in international waters".

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office Lord Triesman had reported to the House of Lords that the vessel was in international waters when the incident occurred.

According to the Argentine diplomat the other topic that is increasingly annoying Argentina is that the Spanish fishing industry is seen to be playing one side off against the other, fishing in both Falklands waters with Islands' licences and in the Argentine EEZ with Argentine licences.

"There are moves underway to ban companies who hold "illegal" Falkland Island fishing licences from also fishing in Argentine waters," he added.

The John Cheek is owned by Pecapuerta a Spanish firm with several fishing operations in Argentina.

In a recent interview province of Buenos Aires Deputy Fisheries Secretary Oscar Fortunato said he was openly in favour of tightening "affairs related to the Malvinas", adding that there can be "no concessions for those who operate with two faces" in the South Atlantic. Among the Spanish companies mentioned as involved in the "double play" are Pescapuerta, Pereira, Frieremar and Pescanova, all from Vigo and with associates in the Falkland Islands.