BY JOHN HOUANIHAU

Judge Dr Kathy-Ann Brown of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) has highlighted legal duty as one tool for addressing Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing in the Pacific region.

A press statement from the FFA Honiara said Judge Brown made the statement when she spoke during the recently concluded 2025 Judicial Symposium in Honiara, Friday last week.

Judicial representatives from eight FFA Members who attended the Judicial Symposium were from the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.

Brown called on Pacific judicial leaders to reinforce legal frameworks that address Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing and uphold obligations under international law in her keynote address.

She also outlined how legal responsibilities under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) are evolving, especially in terms of due diligence and flag state liability within the Exclusive Economic Zones.

“The standard of due diligence has to be more severe for the riskier activities,” Judge Brown stated, referencing IUU fishing within Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs).

“The Tribunal addresses the sorts of measures that flag states would be expected to take to fulfil their due diligence obligations concerning IUU fishing in the EEZ,” she added.

“A flag state could be held liable only where there has been a failure to comply with its due diligence obligation,” Brown said.

She voiced that sanctions for IUU fishing must be strong enough to remove the benefits of non-compliance and to deter future violations.

Over the three-day event, judicial leaders engaged in dialogue on international fisheries law, compliance challenges and the critical role of legal interpretation in securing sustainable fisheries for the Pacific region.

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