‘Hats off to good cooperation and coordination between local agencies’ |27 May 2021

Minister Ferrari (Photo: Joena Meme)

Designated Minister commends combined and tactful efforts

The good cooperation and coordination between local agencies, backed by the support of regional and international partners have been the key element in the recent success of the authority in dealing with several incidents at sea, including a recent drug bust, keeping off the streets a batch of narcotics, estimated at a value of R20 million.

Designated Minister Jean-François Ferrari, who also holds the portfolio for fisheries, made the above statement yesterday during a press conference to give more details on three incidents involving the local security forces, precisely the Seychelles Coast Guard (SCG) with foreign vessels, as well as a locally-registered fishing boat.

The first incident to be addressed was the two dhows intercepted after being suspected to have been fishing illegally in Seychelles’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), after being spotted during a routine patrol by the Seychelles Air Force aircraft.

After the information was passed on to the National Information Sharing and Coordination Centre (NISCC) for coordination with the SCG, patrol vessels – PS Topaz and PS Etoile – were deployed and the two dhows were intercepted around 180nm North West of Mahé.

Although being suspected of having been involved in illegal fishing inside Seychelles’ EEZ, Minister Ferrari said several clues point into the direction of narcotics dealing, but due to lack of evidence, all crew members were cleared by the court with no conditions attached.

The second incident involved eight Chinese fishing vessels which were grounded at Port Victoria after they illegally anchored themselves in our territorial waters.

Upon arriving at the port, health authorities, immigration, custom and the Seychelles Fishing Authority (SFA) went on board to do their due diligence.

Since all eight ships are registered to the People’s Republic of China, a letter was sent to the Chinese embassy to explain the situation to them.

The third case involved local fishing vessel BABA ALI, bearing registration number SZ1419 which was intercepted around 160 nautical miles North East of Mahé by patrol boat PS Etoile.

During the interception the local vessel was observed throwing a suspicious package in the water which was later retrieved by coastguard personnel.

According to a police communiqué, preliminary tests on the contents of the package that were thrown overboard revealed that it contained controlled drugs hashish and heroin, estimated to be worth R20 million.

Minister Ferrari explained that the three operations are exercises to highlight the rise in the government’s commitment to protecting and safeguarding our territory and also to show the intensification of the SCG’s presence at sea.

The Designated Minister however noted that such operations are not about winning or losing, but a strong reminder to everyone who are thinking about violating our EZZ through criminal activities about the presence of the authority at sea.

He explained that the three given examples showcase three different possibilities or scenarios that can happen during such operations.

In the first case involving the dhows, Minister Ferrari said it is not considered as a failure, since according to investigations, even if there were not enough proof, illicit drugs were prevented from entering the country.

Regarding the second scenario involving the Chinese fishing vessels, Minister Ferrari explained that investigations show that the boats came from West Africa and were previously involved in illegal fishing.

This, he said, raised suspicions which led to them being escorted ashore, without being arrested.

Minister Ferrari said after a thorough investigation based on their routes, destinations and history among others, evidence showed that the vessels did not commit any offence within the country’s EEZ, while bad weather was the reason they gave for anchoring near Providence Island.

He explained that despite not committing any offence within the country’s EEZ, investigations show that they have committed offences in other parts of the world.

Minister Ferrari added that all the information gathered was shared with all regional agencies that need it, including the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) and other regulatory agencies, signalling those vessels as high risk.

He explained that the vessels’ agency has agreed to pay the government of Seychelles a fee of US $55,000 as reimbursement for mobilising its assets.

“This is not a fine, but only a fee to cover the cost of moving the government’s assets to as far as Providence Island,” noted the Designated Minister.

He further added that the incident, which he described as a semi-victory, shows that the country is committed to monitoring any suspicious presence in our territorial waters, even if no illegal activities are taking place.

As for the third case which is that of local fishing boat BABA ALI, Mr Ferrari said it is one particular case where the war on drugs has borne fruits.

He noted those involved in such activities are always one step ahead, finding new ways and means to maintain their activities, while the authority, with the help of good intelligence, should keep persisting in trying to counter those operations.

Minister Ferrari refrain to comment more on the incident which is now a police matter, but however reminded those involved that the government remains committed in its attempt to eliminate drugs and that the fight is far from over.

Roland Duval