There are many fishing grounds around China. The problem is that their territory is shrinking and their fishing grounds are no longer sufficient. According to estimates, China accounts for 32% to 40% of worldwide fishing tonnes, outpacing the second and third powers combined. They have no intention of losing quotas, and as a result Chinese fishing vessels travel far from the country to fish.

How much is too much? For example, the coast of South America, where this week we saw hundreds of Chinese fishing vessels raiding squid fishing grounds bordering Peruvian territory.

We are moving full speed towards Peru. The photo is impressive. Dozens of boats tagged as Chinese fishing vessels have settled within 250 miles of Mollendo. They are at just the right distance to remain in international waters and not be thought of as entering Peruvian territory. The image we left below corresponds to last October 7, consisting of 401 Chinese fishing boats, 8 refrigerated ships of different nationalities, and 4 ships -gas station.

Constant mockery. The striking thing is that it is something we can see live almost at any time, thanks to Vessel Finder. It doesn’t matter what time of day or what date you look at the coordinates of the image, because if you approach the border of Peruvian waters in front of Mollendo, you will see hundreds of ships circling around. If you move the camera, you can clearly see a “highway” of fishing boats heading towards China. And vice versa.

The blue ones are fishing

squid. There seems to be little that can be done in international waters, but the problem is that Peruvian fishermen are starting to get tired and, from their perspective, this is an illegal activity that puts the squid at risk. This mollusk, which has a very similar appearance to squid, has recently experienced an incredible price increase: 400% to be exact.

In their statement to La República, the sellers said, “People ask questions about the pot, but it is not there. Because we want to sell it, they take it elsewhere, but we cannot find it.” This is the feeling of fishermen and vendors who see how a staple food in Peruvian gastronomy, while affordable, has become prohibitive due to its price and scarcity.

Doors opening to the countryside. China fishing on the South American border is not new, and the current government has tried to curb this with a decree requiring “foreign-flagged fishing vessels conducting offshore or transboundary fishing activities for hydrobiological resources.” In the maritime domain of the Peruvian State, they will have to rely on SISESAT equipment (Peru’s ship tracking system). The problem is that Chinese ships continued their activities, even entering Peruvian territory.

marking. Another problem faced by the countries in the region is the practice known as ‘marking’. It is the authorization of a ship to fly the flag of another country. In this case, this is subject to its own legislation, and in the case of Chinese fishing companies, this is something that allows the country to allow its boats to access fishing grounds in other countries. And the registration of that foreign ship under the flag of the relevant country is something that can be done more or less easily through commercial agreements.

Be careful, Argentina. And this is something that Chinese companies have been doing in foreign seas (not in international waters, but on the territory of other countries) for several years. In 2016, there was a big scandal: the Lu Yan Yuan Yu 010 scandal. This was a Chinese fishing vessel that entered the Argentine seas illegally. He was carrying a Chinese flag, and when he was caught red-handed, an Argentinian patrol officer tried to communicate with him in both English and Spanish. The fishing boat turned off its lights and set out for international waters.

The Argentinian patrol boat fired deterrent shots, but it appeared the fishing boat tried to ram them, so the Argentinian boat sank Lu Yan Yuian Yu 010 (saving the entire crew, of course). After this incident, Chinese companies began the practice of ‘flagging’, but they suspect Chinese ships from Argentina continue to operate illegally in their waters with one thing in mind: catching squid.

World. Finally, we mentioned the Peruvian example because it is very striking that 400 ships are concentrated so far from home every day, additionally causing product shortages and therefore an increase in prices. , but Chinese fishing boats are actually colonizing the oceans. Even in cases of fishing in Africa, especially in the waters of Morocco, Madagascar, Kenya, Ghana or Senegal, not to mention activities in the Kiribati Islands.

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