Severe Action Against Those Who Rent Or Lease Boats To Foreign Fishermen

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 4 (Bernama) -- Local fishermen who rent or lease their boats to foreign fishermen will face serious action, including being blacklisted from receiving any fisheries related licence, warned Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob. He said this was to curb the spread of such activities involving foreign fishermen, adding that difficulty finding local crew members to work in deep sea fishing was not a valid reason to violate the law by renting out their boats to foreigners. "Foreign boats from Vietnam and are not allowed into Malaysian waters. What happens is that boats registered to local fishermen are rented to foreign fishermen, some are even leased whereby everything including skipper and crew are foreigners. "This time we won't compromise and will immediately revoke licences which are rented or leased to foreign fishermen and blacklist them," he told reporters after a Farmers Organisation Authority (LPP) Eid celebrations function, here, Tuesday. He added that the ministry would also cooperate with relevant agencies, including the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) to check boat licences to ensure they are not being misused by local fishermen. -- BERNAMA