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Fiji investigates suspected pirate ship
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Posted on Oct 23 2006
[B]NADI, Fiji Islands[/B]—While Fiji authorities are attempting to verify documents of a pirate fishing vessel, the top Indonesian diplomat in the country has given his word to investigate circumstances surrounding the vessel.
On Wednesday, the Wen Teng No 688, a pirate vessel blacklisted under the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission was found in the port of Suva.
She has been listed by the IATCC since June 2005 at their annual meeting in Lanzarotte, Spain, listed as carrying out pirate activities in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. The vessel is believed to be Indonesian.
Mr Turaganivalu of Greenpeace, on Oct. 12, 2006, photographed it as Mahkoia Abadi and upon closer inspection saw that it was the Weng Teng No 688.
Six days later, Turaganivalu, while on port watch, saw crewmembers scraping and re-painting it as Mahkota Abadi. The name means “eternal crown” in Indonesian.
Beside the pirate vessel was another vessel identified by its call sign BJ4655, which is registered under the Forum Fisheries Agency registry and belongs to the same company.
Indonesian ambassador to Fiji Franciscus Gurtino met with Greenpeace Australia Pacific Oceans Team leader Nilesh Goundar, political advisor Seni Nabou and intern Josua Turaganivalu at the Mocambo Hotel in Nadi.
Goundar said Gurtino has given his assurance to Greenpeace that he would cooperate with the authorities in Fiji for the verification of the vessels documents.
The team showed photos taken by Turaganivalu as to how crew had changed the vessel name.
Goundar yesterday said that if this vessel was confirmed as not being Indonesian then this incident had far reaching legal and political implications. If, however, the vessel was Indonesian, then it was bound by maritime law to play by the rules as they were becoming major fisheries players in the region.
In August, Papua New Guinea Defence Force seamen seized four more Indonesian fishing vessels caught illegally trawling in the country’s waters.[B][I](Greenpeace)
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