Feature story - June 14, 2010
By now it ought to be obvious to anyone — if we want bluefin tuna tomorrow we need to stop catching them today. But despite the clear scientific evidence and predictions of the bluefin's demise — our activists faced a two hour confrontation at sea when they took action to ensure fish for the future.
From seven inflatable boats activists attempted to release tuna from the cage as the Arctic Sunrise went on top of the net to lower it. But with the bluefin tuna fishermen intent on protecting their short-term profits and the Maltese navy more keen to defend private interests than the future of this fishery - it became impossible for us to release the fish.
Greenpeace action on tuna cages JUNE 13TH [AERIAL PERSPECTIVE] from Greenpeace on Vimeo.
Time out for tuna
We are taking action in the Mediterranean because governments are failing to do so. Releasing bluefin tuna is the only responsible thing to do, for the future of the fish and the future of our oceans. We will confront any and all parts of the Mediterranean bluefin fishery, the most visible example of how politics and fisheries management are failing our oceans.
YOU can take action by signing our Ocean Protection Petition
Over 80 percent of bluefin stocks are estimated to have been fished out of the Mediterranean since industrial fishing in this area began. Ranching operations, like the one Greenpeace confronted, fatten tuna in order to maximize profits, and continue to increase demand for endangered bluefin tuna.
The European Commission did order some large-scale bluefin fishing vessels back to port early (because they had aggressively fished their quota in just a few days), but that's hardly enough when the science tells us NO fishing should take place on such an endangered stock.
Ban on bluefin
The world needs to see a ban on bluefin tuna fishing until stocks recover. The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), the fisheries management body responsible for pushing bluefin to the brink of extinction, must also prove itself capable of being more than an "international disgrace." That particular compliment came from an independent review ICCAT itself commissioned in 2009.
We have been sounding the alarm on the state of Mediterranean tuna stocks for years. We will continue to take non-violent, direct action until governments live up to their responsibility to safeguard the future of these fish and the livelihoods that depend on them.
As the bluefin tuna spawning grounds in the Gulf of Mexico are accidentally devastated by the oil spill - the bluefin in the Mediterranean are being intentionally obliterated by industrial fishing.