Any industrial fishing trawler owner who mistreats a fisheries observer, according to Ghana's Fisheries Minister Mavis Hawa Koomson, is not deserving of a licence to operate in Ghana's territorial seas.
She stated that any allegations of abuse or violations of human rights made against an operator of an industrial vessel will be thoroughly examined and subject to the appropriate punishment.
Additionally, the Minister states that all fishing boats that have been given permission to fish in Ghanaian seas must be insured and updated to meet the demands of the crew members' safety.
Mavis Hawa Koomson said that no one has the right to mistreat any Ghanaian fishing observer on any vessel in Ghana during an interview with JoyNews on the sidelines of the Conference of the Ministers of the Fisheries Committee for the West Central Gulf of Guinea's 14th session, which was held in Accra.
Because the fishing observers are my representatives, mistreating them is equivalent to mistreating me, the Minister. You are not worth operating on the water if you treat them badly. If you have a reputation for abusing the personnel I send on the vessels to supervise, we won't hesitate to revoke your licence, she said.
According to the minister, the ministry has spoken with the Ghana Maritime Authority and other stakeholders in the sector and has made it clear that "we don't want our observers to be mistreated."
She said that appropriate measures were taken to guarantee that the relatives of the victims received compensation in the case of Comforter II, the fishing vessel that sank in 2022 and left over 10 persons missing.
"At the time, I was abroad, but my deputy took it upon himself to see the parents, and all inquiries have shown that it was an occupational hazard rather than a premeditated act. The boat capsized as they tried to draw in their haul despite having a decent catch.
She contends that this is just another factor in the Ghana Maritime Authority's increased scrutiny of the ships.
"We make sure that they have all of these things in place before they can operate in our seas because they learned that when they sought for compensation, they had no insurance coverage. As a result, Comforter II had to pay out compensation to the injured individuals' families.
According to Madam Hawa Koomson, those who cannot be located often must wait a while before it is possible to determine if they are still alive or not.
Abusing the observers is currently prohibited. We are ensuring that each vessel has insurance to safeguard the observers and everyone on board.
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