September 2017 — Per Erik Bergh (Managing Director) and Mathew Markides (Research Assistant) participated in the 2017 FishCRIME Symposium held in Vienna, Austria on the 25-26 September 2017.
Over 200 participants from 57 countries took part in the 2017 FishCRIME Symposium, organised by UNODC, the Norwegian Ministry of Trade Industry and Fisheries and PescaDOLUS. Participants were drawn from the private sector, civil society and academia as well as numerous high-ranking government officials.
The Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries of the Republic of Indonesia, H.E. Ms. Susi Pudjiastuti, in her opening remarks drew on the example of the VIKING, a well-known toothfish poacher that had 12 owners and operated under 25 different flag States in just six years, to illustrate the transnational organised crime that is taking place in the fisheries sector.
The call to turn discussion into concrete action was made by H.E Pudjiastuti who stated, “We have to put the ocean right — together.” The Minister of Aquaculture and Fisheries of the Republic of Ecuador, H.E. Ms. Ana Katuska Drouet Salcedo echoed the sentiment and stressed the need for international cooperation and coordination. The high-level panel also noted the importance of addressing violations appropriately – having due regard for the law while ensuring that sanctions are sufficient to act as deterrents.
