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okonjoiweala17_Yao FengVCG via Getty Images_overfishing

一个终结破坏性渔业补贴的黄金机遇

Jul 14, 2021 Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

发自日内瓦—贸易谈判者甚少有机会一次满足保护弱势群体及其生计、提升海洋健康度和实现其中一个联合国可持续发展目标这三个愿望。但对于本周齐聚世界贸易组织讨论全球限制政府支持渔业新规则的各国贸易部长来说，有这么一个机遇正在等待着他们。

政府发放的公共补贴刺激了过度捕捞，而世贸组织成员在如何限制这些补贴方面已经辩论了20年。在这漫长的20年间全球鱼类资源急剧减少，贫穷脆弱的传统渔民与海洋生态系统则一同遭到了冲击。

2017年联合国粮食及农业组织警告说约有1/3的全球鱼类资源被过度捕捞，相对于1970年的10%和2000年的27%更为恶化。鱼类资源的枯竭威胁着沿海低收入社区的粮食安全以及贫穷脆弱渔民的生计，他们被迫前往离岸越来越远的海域打鱼，却只能带回越来越小的渔获。

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Abhijit Das Jul 18, 2021

Anyone with even a nodding familiarity with negotiations on fisheries subsidies will be able to spot huge loopholes in the latest negotiating text. It will allow countries to continue to provide huge subsidies for enhancing fishing capacities, provided they are able to demonstrate sustainable fishing. Thus, those who have contributed to the problem of overfished stocks in the past, can now hide behind sustainable fishing and management regime to continue with expanding fishing fleets with the help of generous government handouts. If the text as it exists today, becomes the final agreement then it will have one main consequence - developed countries with huge fishing fleets (created on government subsidies) will have a free run of the oceans, while developing countries will not be able to create fishing fleets without government support.

Another problem with the latest negotiating text is that it almost turns a blind eye to the problems caused by distant water fishing, particularly by the European Union, in African waters.

Sorry, Madam DG. The claim that you are trying to make about the progress in negotiations will not do much for sustainable fishing. It will only sustain the capacity of a handful of countries, particularly the developed countries, to continue to deplete fish stocks.
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Elizabeth Pula Jul 15, 2021

A system for reliable tracking of each ship/boat when exiting port, and then unloading tonnage when offloading at port is essential to establish better accountability affecting "depletion allowances" and any redistribution of monies to allow the small-scale artisanal fishing opportunity by subsidies. It also may help if certain territories of the ocean are only permitted for fishing rights at certain times. Setting up zones or quadrants, with only certain permitted and tracked vessels could help. Monitoring can be done via "radio" signal/ or data record that HAS to be turned in with catch. No excuses. Set up a system of "charges" and fees. If the individual craft balk at paying, if corporate entities balk, if individual states balk, then hold up any IMF grants. Annual international "TAXES" can be implemented. Keep the record transparent and totally accountable at all stage of the game and any and every trip from and to port. EVENT RECORDERS can be an essential accountability device, if not turned in, or lost, even if the ship/boat sinks, set up a phenomenal FEE regime that each nation's government is required to pay to WTO to be redistributed to the most needy artisanal fishing area each year on a rotational basis.

Transform the ocean ways from being essentially a pirated garbage zone/s into accountable "FISHING RIGHTS" territories. Start using chemically coded tracking in manufactured plastics etc. so any garbage debris can be scanned and reveal source of products. Manufacturers or states get fined if their garbage is in the ocean or in fish, and other aquatic life. Same goes for "sewage" from cruise and ocean liners. That raw sewage can be encoded and tracked. It is humanly possible.
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