Malta standing by its opposition to tuna ban

Malta will keep up its opposition to a ban on international trade in bluefin tuna despite a recent change of heart by both France and Italy.

The U-turn by the two countries means there is no longer a blocking coalition keeping the EU from taking a position in favour of the ban.

With Malta's lucrative tuna trade to Japan now highly endangered, a government spokesman said Malta would not be changing its stand. Maltese fishermen, he argued, were not to blame for the depleted stocks of this fishery.

Malta believed tuna stocks could be managed sustainably in line with guidelines issued by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT), he said.

"Further reduction in the total allowable catch to a level within the limits set by ICCAT's Standing Committee for Research and Statistics, a further reduction of the fishing season for purse-seiners (special large-scale fishing vessels) and continued efforts to guarantee the compliance of the operators to the present regulations, demonstrates the commitment of all the states involved in this industry to the sustainability of these stocks and related fishery."

He took an indirect dig at the uncontrolled, industrial fishing by French, Italian and Spanish fishing fleets over the years, saying that Maltese fishermen should not be castigated for fishing in a sustainable way, without the use of industrial purse-seiners.

But with France and Italy reversing their original position against the ban, only Spain, Cyprus and Greece now agree with Malta and this is not enough to block an eventual Commission recommendation to support a total ban.

Although the EU Executive has not issued its recommendation yet, it is very likely that it will support the ban in view of the decision to be taken at Doha, Qatar, next month when the UN Convention on endangered species (Cites) meets to decide the future of bluefin tuna.

On the other hand, sources close to the Commission said that although the EU might well push for a ban, the final decision was not a fait-accompli.

"The EU will play an important part in the Doha meeting but so will Japan, which will fight tooth and nail to defend its lucrative sushi market. Rest assured that Tokyo will do all it can to sway the vote of many parties at this convention its way," a Commission official said.

A total ban in international trade would still allow Maltese fishermen to catch tuna but only for the local market.

The Federation of Maltese Aquaculture Producers has so far failed to reply to questions sent by The Times about the recent developments.