By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Photo Credit: Storm Simpson.
Four Chinese-flagged fishing vessels entered South Africa’s Exclusive Economic Zone and territorial waters without proper authorization, triggering a coordinated response from government agencies.
The vessels, owned by Shenzhen Shuiwan Pelagic Fisheries, were stopped and placed under guard in Cape Town, Forestry, Fisheries and Environment Minister Willie Aucamp said in a statement.
The ships requested “innocent passage” on February 23, saying they would leave South African waters by 3 March, but days later sought off‑port limits authorisation without the required documents, he said.
During the period, they repeatedly switched off their automatic identification system transponders while already moving inside South Africa’s territorial waters.
They were detected inside 12 nautical miles of the KwaZulu‑Natal coast and later tracked moving south along the Eastern Cape shoreline.
“South Africa will not tolerate the unlawful use of its maritime zones,” Aucamp said.
They were fined R400,000, which was promptly paid, and the vessels were released and have since left South African waters.
While the incident ended without further escalation, it serves as a reminder of the constant monitoring required to safeguard South Africa’s coastline, one of the longest in Africa and home to important fishing grounds that support local industries and coastal communities.