Alberto Lejarraga
ANDALUCIA’S Junta has asked Gibraltar’s Government to stop ‘harassing’ fishermen from La Linea when they are fishing near the Rock.
Carmen Crespo, Junta’s Councillor for Agriculture and Fishing has said the ‘harassment; should be stopped ‘immediately,’ reminding Fabian Picardo that those waters are under Spanish jurisdiction.
“La Linea fishermen are not breaking any legislation and they have a licence to fish in those waters,” Crespo said.
The Junta representative added: “We are talking about a reduced number of small boats that fish around the area and cause no harm. They also know the exact point where they are at all times.”
Crespo’s words come after the recent controversy regarding a fisherman of La Linea, who said he was ‘harassed’ by the Royal Gibraltar Police when fishing near the Rock.
Jonathan Sanchez, who is also the President of La Linea’s Port Fishermen Association, will face court as the Gibraltarian Government argues he has been ‘illegally’ fishing in their waters.
“I am fishing in waters that the government of my country considers Spanish and I use fishing nets and techniques that are legal in Spain and in the European Union,” Sanchez said.
Earlier this week, in response to these events, Algeciras Mayor Jose Ignacio Landaluce asked Gibraltar Chief Minister to ‘stop harassing’ Spanish boats.
Landaluce insisted that Gibraltarian authorities need to stop doing this to avoid creating ‘a conflict that should not exist because Gibraltar is not the owner of the waters that surrounds the colony.’
“Gibraltar does not own the waters of the Bay and the eastern side, which it uses. We are suffering an unauthorised pressure on Spanish vessels, whose owners are making a living at sea and in the area, where they have always done so to provide for their family,” he said.
Read more:
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