St Vincent vessel, crew free to leave Africa

TRINIDADIAN Judge Anthony Lucky was among the 21-member panel of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) who on Saturday ordered the immediate release of a St Vincent vessel and 19 members of its crew from the hands of the government of Guinea-Bissau. In a 35-page judgment delivered by the President of ITLOS, Grenadian Dolliver Nelson in Hamburg, Germany, the government of Guinea-Bissau was ordered to release the St Vincent registered vessel, the Juno Trader which had been impounded three months ago.

The St Vincent vessel was released after posting a bond of euro 300,000. In his ruling, the President said the tribunal unanimously agreed that Guinea-Bissau promptly release the Juno Trader, together with its cargo after posting the bond and that the crew is free to leave that country without any conditions. Apart from the president, five other judges including Lucky gave separate opinions. Lucky was the last person to deliver an 11-page judgment in which he gave reasons why the St Vincent vessel should be set free. The case was submitted to the Tribunal under article 292 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on November 18 on behalf of the flag state of the vessel, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, against Guinea-Bissau. 

The dispute concerns the detention of the vessel Juno Trader and its crew by the authorities of Guinea-Bissau for the alleged  infringement of national fisheries legislation in its exclusive economic zone. The Juno Trader is a refrigerated cargo vessel, flying the flag of St Vincent. It is owned in the British Virgin Islands. The Juno Trader was registered in St Vincent on February 14, 1994. The Juno Trader received a transhipment in Mauritanian waters of 1,183.3 tonnes of frozen fish in packages and 112 tonnes of fish meal from its sister ship, Juno Warrior. Around 2 pm on September 26, the Juno Trader crossed the EEZ of Guinea-Bissau. Three hours later, the master of the Juno Trader reported that a vessel belonging to the government of Guinea-Bissau approached. The persons on board that vessel were gesturing with their hands and arms and within five minutes, there was sporadic gunfire.

One member of the Juno Trader was injured. The master of the Juno Trader sent out distress signals following which a hospital ship arrived and took the wounded crew member for first aid treatment. But the government of Guinea-Bissau claimed that its coast guard vessel observed “an unknown and undeclared” reefer vessel in its waters. The government contended that the vessel was carrying out illegal fishing. When spotted, the vessel pulled in its anchor and fled. The government claimed that when its coast guard boarded the Juno Trader “there were threatening shots fired, but it was not easy and after two hours and 30 minutes of intense intimidation, it was stopped and boarded.” The government added that the master and crew of the Juno Trader were detained by armed personnel. The coast guard claimed that the fish found on the St Vincent vessel belonged to Guinea-Bissau.
 
The authorities later found that the Juno Trader violated the provisions of the fishing legislation of Guinea-Bissau. They fined the owners of the vessel $175,398 euros and ordered that all the fish be seized by the government. It was some time later that St Vincent took the issue to ITLOS as a dispute. Despite the ruling of ITLOS, the matter does not end there.  The owners of the Juno Trader have to return to the court of Guinea-Bissau to contest the heavy penalty handed down to them.