Fighting Over Illegal Fishing Leads to Armed Conflict, Deaths

Fighting Over Illegal Fishing Leads to Armed Conflict, Deaths

By Gregory Stachel

Source: voanews

4/6/2022

Credit: AP Photo/M. Urip, File

Illegal fishing and overfishing are increasingly the cause of armed conflicts across the world’s oceans, research suggests. Both practices reduce an important yet difficult to defend food source for billions of people worldwide.

Jessica Spijkers researched the issue of fishing and fighting for Australia’s national science agency. She found that fishing conflicts rose internationally over 40 years ending in 2016. She says conflicts often involved claims of illegal and overfishing. Her examination included disputes that sometimes came before the fighting.

The Associated Press also investigated the fishing issue. It examined records and reports from independent conflict databases and governments, as well as news media. It found in the past five years, government forces have attacked foreign fishing boats more than 360 times. The AP says such action sometimes led to deaths.

During that same time, another 850 foreign fishing boats were seized by officials and systematically crushed, blown up, or sunk.