Vietnamese 'blue boats'

The commander of the French navy in the territory Jean-Louis Fournier, said 55 vessels had been warned and five had been detained.

Five captains were now serving eight to 10 months in a New Caledonian jail for illegal fishing and 30 fishermen have been flown home.

The commander said those on board the "blue boats" had no identification papers and no money but were determined to dive for beche-de-mer as part of well organised fleets.

He said the boats took weeks to get from Vietnam to New Caledonia's waters where they had engaged in fights with local fishermen.

Reports from New Caledonia say the man was presented to a judge and remanded in custody.

His vessel was intercepted by the French military last week near the Chesterfield Islands which lies about 500 kilometers off the main island.

The navy vessel took the 17 crew on board and sailed them to Noumea.

Last month, the captains of three Vietnamese blue boats were jailed for illegal fishing.

Their crew however escaped on two boats from Noumea.

Photo: AFP A Vietnamese "blue boat". 

Unlike licensed vessels, the boats carry no automatic identification systems and being made of wood, they literally slip under the radar.

Blue boats had not been sighted in Vanuatu's waters previously, but a number have been intercepted in the last two weeks, and off neighbouring New Caledonia, three boats escaped from Noumea harbour after their captains were prosecuted.

Vanuatu's director of fisheries, Kalo Pakoa, is calling on Vietnam to help stop the illegal fishing.

The blue boats as they are called are ocean-going wooden fishing vessels that sail to the waters around the Western Pacific Islands in search of sea cucumbers, giant clams and lobster, as well as fish.

Papua New Guinea's fisheries minister has described the boats as a threat to national security, and the director general of the Forum Fisheries Agency, James Movick, says regional collaboration is vital if the blue boats are to be stopped.

Movick says the ‘blue boats’ are having significant impact.