Mozambican fisherman back in court

Tanya Waterworth

ONLY three of the 15 Mozambican fisherman arrested for illegally fishing in South African waters arrived for their court hearing.
Held in the Richards Bay Magistrate’s Court on Friday, the owner of the fishing vessel ‘Twanano’ and two of his crew appeared.
According to Mozambican authorities, the remaining 12 crew members, including the captain, did not make it back to South Africa for the court appearance as the necessary transport had not been arranged.
The 15 men were released on bail in June following their highly publicised arrest – the owner was released after paying bail of R100 000, while the skipper was granted bail of R5 000 and the crew were each granted bail at R500.
The case has been tipped to set a precedent for South African marine law, as the trawler was allegedly caught fishing in the sanctuary waters within a marine protected environment off Kosi Bay.

Consequences
While State Prosecutors have confirmed that two further charges are being formulated following evidence on the boat’s position according to GPS (Global Positioning System) readings, the defence is expected to challenge the skipper and crew members’ ability on reading their position as well as conservation protection issues.
This will include the potato bass found on board the trawler, which is a protected species in South Africa, but according to the defence team, such fish is not protected in Mozambique.
If found guilty, the fishermen could face a hefty fine of up to R9-million, plus 10 years’ imprisonment.
Control Prosecutor at Richards Bay Magistrate’s Court, Olivia Eybers said the case has been remanded to 24 October for further investigation, while warrants for those who did not appear were also stayed to the same date.