Brazzaville: The Republic of Congo has banned
69 Chinese fishing boats from its waters for illicit
activities, Fisheries Minister Dieudonne Kiessiekiaoua said
on Friday.
"These boats are suspended until further notice from
industrial fishing in Congolese territorial waters, because of
a failure to respect the laws and regulations in force,"
Kiessiekiaoua told a news agency.
The banned boats, which belong to three Chinese companies
named as Lulu, Rong Chang and Huayi Jinri, were fishing in a
prohibited zone up to six nautical miles offshore, which is
set aside for reproduction and renewal of fish stocks.
In August, Kiessiekiaoua said that Congo had acquired a
satellite surveillance system to watch over boats and better
control its waters. The central African country also recently
banned fishing with explosives and with fine-meshed nets.
PTI
First Published: Friday, December 30, 2011, 22:29