Thailand sets up command centre on IUU Fishing solutions

BANGKOK, April 30 (TNA) - Thai Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-ocha, who is also Chief of the army-led National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), has ordered the setting up of an ad-hoc command centre tasked with finding solutions to the Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and directly supervised by the prime minister himself. NCPO announced the order, signed by Prime Minister General Prayut and based on Section 44 of Thailand's Provisional Constitution, on Wednesday night, with its operation set to start on May 1, 2015. Under the NCPO order, the ad-hoc command centre, headed by Thai Navy Chief Admiral Kraisorn Chansuvanich, is responsible for working out solutions to IUU Fishing, negotiating with the European Union (EU) and coordinating with all parties concerned to find solutions, including proposing a revision or promulgation of fishery and relevant laws. The NCPO order followed EU's recent issuance of a "yellow card" against Thailand for IUU Fishing, demanding that the Thai Kingdom address the problem within six months, or face an import ban on Thai fishery products to the 28-member European trade bloc. The NCOP order requires the ad-hoc command centre to submit continual reports on progress of IUU Fishing solutions to the prime minister and NCPO chief until EU revokes its yellow card against Thailand. The NCPO order also requires business operators in the Thai fishery sector to issue seamen's books, install a navigation monitoring system on their fishing boats and not to fish on territorial waters of foreign countries or high seas. (TNA)