Five Asian Fishermen Acquitted in Case Involving Illegal Fishing Nets

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com

The High Appeals Court has upheld the acquittal of five Asian fishermen who were accused of possessing prohibited and unlicensed fishing nets aboard their vessel and at the fishing site. The nets in question were of the "hyali" type, a type of floating trawl net.

The defendants' lawyer, Zahra Naama, argued in both the first instance court and the Appeals Court that the case lacked any evidence to convict her clients. She emphasised that her clients maintained their innocence throughout all stages of the proceedings.

The High Appeals Court in its decision, thoroughly examined the case, considering its circumstances and the evidence presented by the prosecution. The court carefully weighed this evidence against the defendants' denial. And it concluded that the prosecution's evidence was insufficient to prove the charges and did not find it convincing that the defendants committed the alleged act.

The court noted that the testimonies of the witnesses did not state that the nets they inspected were unauthorised or prohibited. "Their statements merely indicated that they had inspected the nets and found them to be compliant with specifications and authorised by the General Administration for the Protection of Marine Wealth," the court pointed out.

"The witnesses admitted that they did not measure the length of the nets to confirm the accuracy of the specifications. While they stated in the investigation reports that the nets were compliant, this did not establish that the nets were unauthorised," the court added.

"The fact that they did not measure the length could indicate that the nets were authorised and not prohibited if their length met the required specifications. Therefore, their change in testimony did not provide sufficient grounds to conclude that the nets were prohibited. The court did not find it convincing that the seized nets were prohibited," the ruling explained.

The court further pointed out that the case files and the seizure report, which led to the detention of the boat carrying the nets, showed that the nets were inspected by two individuals acting as maritime inspectors.

"They determined that the nets were compliant with specifications. At the time of the inspection, the nets were on board the seized vessel, under the custody of the Coast Guard. Therefore, it was highly unlikely that the defendants, or anyone else, could have intervened to make the nets appear compliant during the inspection, despite the initial claim that they were in violation," the ruling concluded.