EU accused of 'hypocrisy' for proposing measures to cut tuna overfishing in Indian Ocean

The European Union, which is guilty of overfishing yellowfin tuna in the Indian Ocean, has called for reductions to conserve the population of the fish species. According to The Guardian, smaller nations in the Indian Ocean have accused the EU of "hypocrisy and neocolonialism" for suggesting conservation measures despite being the largest fisher of yellowfin in the region. European nations, largely France and Spain, operate fishing vessels in the Indian Ocean to catch yellowfin tuna. 

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Ahead of the emergency meeting of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) to discuss conservation of the overfished species, the Maldives and the EU proposed measures to reduce overfishing and increase the population. However, the EU's proposal does not include measures to cut the use of fish aggregating devices (FADs), which scientists believe is the single biggest contributor to the decline of the yellowfin population. FADs are mostly used by European vessels to attract schools of fish, making the process easy for fishermen. 

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EU's proposal inadequate 

Maldives has called the EU's proposal "woefully inadequate" for not suggesting appropriate measures that will seriously help in better conservation. A former Seychelles fishery official has accused the EU of "hypocrisy". EU is the largest fisher in the Indian Ocean of yellowfin, catching 70,000 tonnes in 2019, well ahead of Iran's 58,000 tonnes, and Maldives' 44,000 tonnes. A Maldives fishery ministry official has said the EU is "not serious" about the conservation otherwise it would have proposed reductions required to save the population.

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According to the Global Tuna Alliance, Maldives' proposal would see 14% less catch in 2021 if compared to 2014 levels, while the EU's proposal would see 6% less catch. Environmentalists say Maldives' proposal is much closer to the reduction target set by the coastal nation, calling it a "bare minimum" if nations are serious about conserving the fish species. 

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