A court decision to free two foreigners from a charge of fishing illegally in Malta’s territorial waters could pose a double threat to the country’s interests: an economic one to Maltese fishermen and an ecological one to all those who are committed to protecting our fragile marine ecosystem.
The Magistrates’ Court decided that since the accused were in conformity with European Community rules regarding special fishing rights, they were not prohibited from fishing within the Maltese management zone once conferred with a special fishing permit.
It, thus, appears that any EU fishermen having ‘special fishing rights’ can fish in Maltese territorial waters because purse seine or dragnet use does not require a licence.
Even if the Maltese fishing industry may be minuscule in economic terms, the island’s fishermen are bound to be negatively affected. Some argue that local fishermen are generally less equipped to embark on fishing trips very far out at sea while neighbouring countries often find Maltese territorial waters fertile enough to conduct fishing expeditions.
But it is much more worrying that this type of fishing in Malta’s 25-mile management zone could threaten our fragile marine ecosystem.
So far, the parliamentary secretary responsible for fishing has not made a public comment on the implications of this court ruling.
One would also hope that environmental organisations once again raise their voices to alert public opinion about the threat of overfishing, especially in Malta’s marine conservation areas.
Even if it is established that the Maltese authorities still have a right to protect marine conservation areas, because during EU accession talks the European Commission had acknowledged Malta’s efforts to conserve fish stocks over the previous 30 years and accepted that membership should not lead to a decline in the protection of fish stocks in the zone, it may prove logistically difficult for the country to manage effectively such large conservation areas.
The solution must be found at the political level through negotiations between Malta and the EU.
Our small sea patrol fleet is already busy enough trying to protect the country’s shores from illegal immigration, smuggling and other illegal activities.
In recent years, the Armed Forces of Malta’s patrol boats have also been instrumental in saving the lives of desperate migrants trying to travel from North Africa to Europe.
The EU’s fundamental right of freedom of movement of its citizens within the Union’s territory is not being challenged. What is being contested is the right of a member state to protect its environment from almost irreversible loss of resources as a result of overfishing.
The EU itself has quite complex rules to, for example, control the amountof tuna being caught every year by European fishermen.
For small countries like Malta, protecting their fragile marine environment is an equally important priority.
The government should react immediately to this development and come up with a coherent strategy to protect the local marine environment, even if this will mean tough negotiations with the European Commission.
Public opinion and all political parties should be in favour of defending our rights to protect our marineecosystem, which is no less impor-tant than other aspects of the island’s fragile environment.