Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Bui Minh Thanh chaired a meeting to review efforts to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and implement Conclusion No.151/KL-TTCP issued by the Government Inspectorate of Vietnam on July 31.
At the meeting, Deputy Director of the HCMC Department of Agriculture and Environment Pham Thi Na said the department had coordinated with investigators in providing documents related to two areas: patrol records and payments for patrol trips conducted by the Fisheries and Fisheries Surveillance Sub-Department, some of which showed signs of fabricated documents; and 197 case files involving fishing vessels that had lost their monitoring signals after the statute of limitations for administrative penalties had expired or were not subject to penalties.
The sub-department has been continuing to work with the city police to clarify and report on relevant issues.
Of 1,135 fishing vessels whose VMS disconnection cases had previously been closed improperly, authorities have so far verified and penalized 426 cases, with total fines exceeding VND13 billion (US$494,000). The municipal fishing port management board has also remitted more than VND18.7 million ($710) to the State budget in excess fees collected for certifying the origin of seafood at Loc An Fishing Port.
HCMC has 4,436 fishing vessels, all of which are currently operating with vessel monitoring system (VMS) equipment installed. Of 355 vessels not yet eligible to operate, local authorities have installed GPS devices to monitor the anchoring positions of 198, while the remainder are being closely monitored at ports.
Local authorities reported difficulties in handling violations. Phuoc Hai Commune is dealing with 54 vessels that have lost VMS connectivity, with some owners refusing to cooperate and forcing authorities to visit their homes to draw up violation records. Long Hai Commune has suspended 86 vessels registered for net fishing but found to be using illegal trawling gear, requiring their owners to remove the gear or change their fishing methods before they can resume operations.
Concluding the meeting, Mr. Bui Minh Thanh ordered agencies to fully implement Conclusion No.151, address outstanding shortcomings, clarify responsibilities, and deal with violations decisively.
Regarding support for fishermen, the city has approved assistance totaling more than VND56 billion ($2.13 million). Agencies must closely supervise disbursements to ensure funds reach the intended recipients and prevent errors or complaints.
HCMC Vice Chairman Bui Minh Thanh also ordered the processing time for vessels losing VMS connectivity to be cut from 60 days to five. Owners must be immediately notified to return to port, with strict penalties imposed for non-compliance. The Department of Justice was tasked with studying a “yellow card-red card” system for repeat offenders, under which serious violations could result in suspension or revocation of fishing licenses.
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