BFAR to seek SC reconsideration of vessel monitoring ruling

THE Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) said on Monday that it will ask the Supreme Court (SC) to reconsider its vessel monitoring system ruling, which the court had declared unconstitutional. The BFAR said it is “confident a review will uphold the BFAR, a technical and specialized agency duty-bound to carry out its mandate to implement the amended Fisheries Code of 1998.” The bureau said the vessel monitoring system is a frontline enforcement tool used to monitor compliance with regulations and conservation measures such as protecting gravid female stocks from growing and safeguarding nursery areas from illegal exploitation during the closed fishing season. It noted that commercial fishing licenses are a privilege and not a right according to the Fisheries Code of 1998 and that they are subject to state rules and regulations. Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. said he is confident that the Supreme Court will reconsider its ruling, saying that the vessel monitoring system helps address illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing. “We are fairly confident the Supreme Court will reconsider the ruling, and allow us to use this internationally recognized vessel monitoring system as the most effective way to deal with IUU fishing as it relies on electronic data and not manual filing of commercial fishing firms,” Mr. Laurel said in a statement issued by the BFAR. The BFAR said any future monitoring framework will be aligned with constitutional safeguards. “The bureau said it will review its implementing mechanisms to ensure technical soundness in fulfilling the State’s obligation to conserve the country’s marine resources while taking note of the concerns of its stakeholders,” the BFAR said. In a 13-2 decision promulgated on Jan. 31, the Supreme Court upheld the 2021 ruling of the Malabon City Regional Trial Court Branch 170 that granted the petitions of Royale Fishing Corp., Bonanza Fishing and Market Resources, Inc., and RBL Fishing Corp., to declare Fisheries Administrative Order (FAO) No. 266 null and void for unconstitutionality. FAO No. 266 requires commercial fishing vessels to install vessel monitoring systems and electronic reporting systems in order to detect IUU fishing. It was struck down after the government failed to demonstrate the measure’s effectiveness and after finding that it breached the fishing companies’ constitutional right to privacy. — Marron Joshua F. Mendoza