Fisheries Minister Dr. Hussain Rasheed Hassan says local authorities would take action against any foreign vessel caught fishing in Maldivian waters.
He made the comments at the parliament today while answering a question by the MP for Hoarafushi Constituency Ahmed Saleem.
MP Saleem had asked whether Maldivian authorities had granted permission to Indian vessels to fish in Maldivian waters outside of the country's laws.
He also asked if authorities would give a blind eye if a foreign vessel caught inside Maldivian waters turns out to be an Indian vessel.
Answering the questions, Minister Hussain said that the Maldives and India share a border in the north of the country, and the distance between the two borders cannot even be wider than 200 miles.
Minister said that authorities had received complaints from local fishermen that Indian fishing vessels had been entering Maldivian waters. He continued saying that authorities have had to act when local fishing vessels stray into Indian waters as well.
Minister Hussain said that the coast guard has not notified the Ministry about an excessive number of Indian vessels caught in Maldivian waters nor have they reported an increasing number of Indian fishing vessels in Maldivian waters.
He further said that the law does not grant special permission to fishing vessels from a certain country and that authorities would take action against any vessels caught in Maldivian waters regardless of it origin.
