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Morocco continues to discard by-catches in occupied Western Sahara
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WSRW has received images of fish being dumped in the desert near the town of Dakhla to hide over-fishing. The pictures were taken two days ago.
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These images were taken in the Mheriz area, located south of the city of Dakhla in occupied Western Sahara. Local sources state that "hundreds of tons" are being discarded "because of unregulated fishing by the Moroccan fleet, which brings more than its cargo, and here are discarding".

Though this particular discard incident is being attributed to the Moroccan fishermen trying to hide their over-quota fishing, other fleets are also guilty of this destructive practice. Near the end of 2013, WSRW received footage showing a Belize flagged vessel pumping by-catches back into the ocean - a shocking testimony of how Morocco manages Western Sahara's fish stocks.

The European Union, fishing illegally in occupied Western Sahara through its Fisheries Partnership Agreement with Morocco , has issued a landing obligation in January this year. EU fishermen are henceforth obliged to land unwanted catches rather than throwing them back into the water. This rule also applies to international waters, which is the legal status of the waters of occupied Western Sahara. Images such as the ones below raise the question whether the landing obligation will make fishing more sustainable. While EU fishermen may act in good faith and land unwanted catches, the fish can just as easily be dumped on land, as appears to be a common practice in Morocco and the Moroccan occupied parts of Western Sahara.

WSRW has in the past also received photos of discards on land, depicting massive piles of unwanted fish left to rot in the desert.

Morocco is currently occupying the larger part of Western Sahara, including the coastline. Through the fishing industry, Morocco manages to settle many of its own nationals into the territory, thus hampering a solution to the conflict. The International Court of Justice has rejected Morocco's claims to the land in 1975. Nearly half of the Western Sahara people live as refugees in Algerian desert camps where, in periods, one in five children suffer from severe malnutrition. A striking contrast with the abundant fish being dumped in their occupied homeland.

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News:

15.10 - 2019 / 15.10 - 2019THIS PAGE IS NO LONGER UPDATED
23.10 - 2015 / 23.10 - 2015Morocco continues to discard by-catches in occupied Western Sahara
29.06 - 2015 / 29.06 - 2015Moroccan government accused of fraud with EU anti-driftnet money
02.12 - 2014 / 02.12 - 2014Maria Damanaki opposed continued EU fishing in Western Sahara
18.09 - 2014 / 18.09 - 2014EU-Morocco fish deal: who's shown an interest so far?
18.09 - 2014 / 18.09 - 2014Dutch first to fish under unethical EU-Morocco fish deal
09.08 - 2014 / 09.08 - 2014UN former legal chief slams EU legal view as "preposterous"
21.07 - 2014 / 21.07 - 2014Illegal EU fish agreement with Morocco now ratified by King
14.03 - 2014 / 14.03 - 20149 detained, threats of jail if demonstrating against EU fisheries
11.02 - 2014 / 11.02 - 2014Here are the EU states that will benefit from the dirty fisheries
11.02 - 2014 / 11.02 - 2014Morocco adopts contentious EU-Morocco fish deal
10.12 - 2013 / 10.12 - 2013Occupied Sahara: EU undermining Human Rights on Human Rights Day
08.12 - 2013 / 08.12 - 2013More vids of demonstration and victims of EU/Moroccan plans in Sahara
08.12 - 2013 / 08.12 - 2013Western Sahara president asks UN intervention to stop EU and Morocco
08.12 - 2013 / 08.12 - 2013Many injured in protest against EU/Spain fish plans in Western Sahara
05.12 - 2013 / 05.12 - 2013EU fish plans illegal, 21 jurists and lawyers state
05.12 - 2013 / 05.12 - 2013267 organisations ask European Parliament to reject fish accord
04.12 - 2013 / 04.12 - 2013President of African Parliament calls on EU to respect Sahara rights
02.12 - 2013 / 02.12 - 2013Greenpeace: EU parliament must vote no to Western Sahara fisheries
18.11 - 2013 / 18.11 - 2013European Liberal Youth calls for no EU fishing in occupied Sahara






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The EU considers to pay Morocco to fish in occupied Western Sahara. An EU-Morocco Fisheries Agreement from 2013 would be both politically controversial and in violation of international law. The international Fish Elsewhere! campaign demands the EU to avoid such unethical operations, and go fishing somewhere else. No fishing in Western Sahara should take place until the conflict is solved.
عريضة لوقف النهب

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يحضر الاتحاد الاوربي لإبرام اتفاق غير اخلاقي جديد للصيد البحري مع المغرب في سنة 2013.

مرة اخرى، يعتزم الاتحاد الاوربي الصيد في المياه الاقليمية للصحراء الغربية المحتلة في خرق سافر للقانون الدولي. وقع هذه العريضة للتنديد بذلك.

"EU fisheries in Western Sahara must be stopped"




Western Sahara human rights activist Aminatou Haidar hopes for increased attention to the EU plundering of occupied Western Sahara.

READ ALSO

10.04 - 2012
Guardian: EU taking its over-fishing habits to west African waters?
15.12 - 2011
EU Observer: Morocco expels EU fishing boats
15.12 - 2011
BBC News: Morocco's fish fight: High stakes over Western Sahara
15.12 - 2011
European Voice: MEPs reject EU-Morocco fisheries pact
15.12 - 2011
Reuters: EU lawmakers reject Morocco fisheries pact






Human rights activist Malak Amidane denounces EU fisheries