A Chinese fishing boat operating in the Indian Ocean has sunk and all 39 crew members on board are missing, state media reported Wednesday.
Television channel CCTV reported that the sinking occurred around 3 a.m. on Tuesday. According to the same source, the crew consisted of Chinese, Indonesians and Filipinos.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Chinese Premier Li Qiang have directed overseas Chinese diplomats and the Ministries of Agriculture and Transport to support search and rescue efforts.
CCTV did not identify the exact location of the sinking, only that it occurred in the middle of the vast Indian Ocean stretching from South Asia and the Arabian Peninsula to East Africa and Western Australia.
The Philippine Coast Guard command center said today it is monitoring the situation and coordinating with the Chinese embassy in Manila and search and rescue teams operating near the ship’s last known location.
The number 8 Lupenglaiyuanyu boat was based in the eastern coastal province of Shandong and operated by the Penglaiyingyu company, according to Chinese media. It was also identified by hull numbers 18 and 028.
China is believed to operate the largest fishing fleet in the world. Many ships remain at sea for months or even years at a time, supported by Chinese maritime security services and an extensive network of support vessels.
Nothing is known about the cause of the sinking.
According to a report released in 2021 by a Norway-based watchdog group, Chinese squid fishing vessels have been accused of using wide nets to illegally catch already overfished tuna as part of a wave of unregulated activity in the Indian Ocean. the lack of international cooperation to protect marine species on the high seas.
Chinese fishing vessels operating illegally have been known to sail “in the dark”, with their mandatory tracking device obscuring a vessel’s position, occasionally broadcasting or providing false identifications. If that’s the case on the wreck, rescue and salvage efforts can become much more difficult.
Source: DN
