Illegal fishing : 18 Malagasy boats boarded
A large-scale fisheries police operation allowed the Seychellois navy to board no fewer than 18 Malagasy boats and arrest 172 sailors around the Farquhar atoll, 300 kilometers northeast of the northern tip of Madagascar. The boats, dhows and smaller boats, illegally fished for sea cucumbers. This is the third time in a year that fishermen from Malagasy ports have been arrested in Seychelles waters. 164 of the 172 sailors arrested in early February were Malagasy : they were repatriated, just like the 8 Sri Lankan fishermen also on board.
