Too dangerous to board

Lieutenant-commander Graham MacLean in Dunedin yesterday in front of  HMNZS Wellington. Photo by...
Lieutenant-commander Graham MacLean in Dunedin yesterday in front of HMNZS Wellington. Photo by Linda Robertson.
The Yongding sails through icy waters. Photos supplied.
The Yongding sails through icy waters. Photos supplied.
Fishermen haul a toothfish on board.
Fishermen haul a toothfish on board.

The captain of HMNZS Wellington says it was his decision, and his alone, not to board vessels caught poaching toothfish near the Antarctic coast.

Lieutenant-commander Graham MacLean and his crew of 71 sailed into Otago Harbour yesterday morning after returning from a mission to intercept three vessels about 60 nautical miles off the Antarctic coast.

The weather in the region was ''quite extreme at the best of times'', he said.

The New Zealand ship's crew exploited that to its own advantage.

Once the fishing vessels were detected near the Ross Sea, the Wellington remained out of sight over the horizon and sent its smaller sea boats ahead.

The boats hid behind icebergs and in the line of the sun to get closer to the fishing vessels undetected and take photographs and video footage of their activities.

Lt-cmdr MacLean said the main mission for the Wellington was to gather evidence so those behind the illegal fishing could be found and prosecuted.

The decision not to board the vessels has been criticised by New Zealand First, which late last week called for a ''show of force'' and questioned the capabilities of the offshore patrol vessel.

But Lt-cmdr MacLean said the fishing vessels were manoeuvring to avoid being boarded, the weather conditions were ''incredibly dynamic and boisterous'', with ice in the water, and he had made a decision not to risk the safety of crew.

''I made the call on the conditions that presented themselves.''

The Wellington was patrolling in waters covered by Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) agreements.

Lt-cmdr MacLean said the ship discovered three Equatorial Guinea-flagged fishing vessels - the Kunkun, the Songhua and the Yongding - in the Ross Sea.

Equatorial Guinea is not a member of CCAMLR and the vessels were not legally permitted to fish in the region.

His crew proceeded to ''catch them in the act'' of illegal fishing, which was an important part of the mission.

There was also dialogue via radio between the Wellington and the fishing vessels, carried out in Spanish by a Spanish-speaking member of the crew.

Lt-cmdr MacLean said he would not discuss the details of that dialogue, as it would be used as evidence.

The Wellington then spent a week monitoring the vessels.

He said there was a ''bigger story'' to the issue, with evidence gathered to be used to launch investigations targeting the organisation behind the fishing vessels' visit to the area.

The idea of using the Wellington's guns to fire a warning shot would have raised safety and environmental issues.

New Zealand Defence Force maritime component commander Commodore John Campbell said the Wellington had concluded its patrol in the Southern Ocean and after resupplying in Dunedin, it would sail to the Devonport Naval Base in Auckland.

''During this patrol, the captain and crew have encountered a range of difficult circumstances and they have risen to those challenges safely and professionally every time.''

Foreign Minister Murray McCully said an international effort was under way to bring those responsible for the illegal fishing to justice.

david.loughrey@odt.co.nz

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