Thread by @foritssake

Much thanks to @PuntlandPirates work, notes & reflections
- Iranian Gillnetters (indiscriminate way of capturing marine animals-illegal) licensed by officials-Evidence
- Forced labor
- NEFCO tried to sell #Somalia fish privately, facilitates IUU fishing
globalinitiative.net/wp-content/upl…

Global Fishing Watch & #Somalia Gov both reported more than 100 Iranian vessels in Somali waters in 2019-2020

#Puntland issued, lacks legal powers, 52 licenses in less than 60 days to trawlers, illegal in Puntland & Somalia, per doc obtained by @GI-TOC $10k-15k each license

Assuming continuity of the licence fees per year, #Puntland would get $3M-$5M per year.

This money is collected by agents, there are few of them, 5.

One of them is Saddam Ismail, an agent for 8/52 vessels.

He is linked to arms smuggling: delivering arms & picking up fish

Apart from negative impact of trawling in Somali waters, & its negative impact on coastal communities, people in #Puntland need to know where this money goes & how the impact is going to be mitigated?

See the names of Trawling vassals obtained by GI-TOC from internal documents

7 vessels whose ownership linked to Thai Senator, were re-flagged by #Somalia’s Fed Gov & #Puntland, after Thai government started investigations on them on matters relating to illegal fishing, labor abuses & later validity of their catch & health certificates.

Somalia’Fed Gov attempted to defend Al Wasam ( based in Bosaso) legitimacy after Thai investigations on the validity of its catch certificate. The vassal took 46 containers of fish to Thailand from #Somalia. When Thai learned the re-flagging, it denied containers entry to Thai

@GI-TOC learned that through phone records analysis, how is not clear: a contact between Al Wesam Fishing Company, a company that operated Al Wesam fleet, & Arms traffickers in #Yemen & #Somalia, suggesting, if true, links between illegal fishing & arms trafficking

#NEFCO, company based in #Puntland, with ties to external actors interested in fishing.

NEFCO operates 4 trawlers, prohibited by #Puntland & Somalia fishery law 2014, despite illegality of its work, it secured fishing licences, flag registration, export doc from authorities

Four Korea flagged Trawlers, previously operated by company located in #Oman, managed by Korean National,

were re-flagged by #Puntland after trawlers were denied exportation of their catch to #Korea on matters pertaining to tightening regulations to combat illegal #fishing.

Somalia’s Fed Gov under Hassan Sheikh in 4/2015 wrote to IO Tuna commission: NEFCO trawlers fishing illegally in #Somalia.

Some of the trawlers arrived with their catch to Oman, FGS protested.

#Puntland supported the Trawlers.

In 5/2015, FGS retracted its claim of illegality

There are couple of reasons to believe that Korean national still owns NEFCO trawlers.

1- Consigner of the #NEFCO vassals cargo phone number is same as the #Korea national that managed the previous company, that operated the trawlers

2- Korean nationals operate the trawlers

Federal Government of #Somalia, under @M_Farmaajo just like @HassanSMohamud endorsed under their respective fishery & marine ministries, #Puntland issuance of licences to NEFCO trawlers, even though trawling/industrial fishing is prohibited by Somalia fishery law, 2014.

NEFCO member & nephew of its founder, grew ambitious & attempted #NEFCO like project at Fed level:

to sell licences to foreign companies through Horn Investment Agency, private agency formed with help of two Fed ministers, Ibrahim & Warsame.

Plan drafted & Video meeting called

Horn Investment Agency ( HIA) on behalf of FGS contacted China Fishing Co: noting HIA has right to sell permits to fish in #Somalia.

-HIA advised FGS S finance minister to contact China embassy while using the letterhead of the ministry to offer Pingtan Co fishing opportunities

Fed Ministry of #fisheries @mrbidhaan gave fuel provisioning tender to Hass petroleum, Co based in Kenya, to fuel China vessels in #Somalia waters, without tendering process, revenue: ~$12-$18M

- Tender not published in the finance ministry site

- FGC did not review the tender