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of Commerce. We encourage the Secretary to retain the present regulations if and when a 

 new Plan is issued. 



In conclusion, the worthy goals of the highly migratory species provisions of the 1990 

 Amendments remain illusory. At the time of passage, the record of the Floor debate should 

 have made clear the intent of the authors of this provision that neither it nor the ATCA would 

 "undermine the Secretary's authority to take necessary action to protect the fishery resources 

 placed under his or her care through the Magnuson Act." In our view, that intent has yet to 

 be realized. In our efforts to encourage domestic, non-allocation conservation measures for 

 highly migratory species such as swordfish and bluefin tuna, we have been thwarted 

 repeatedly because the agency continues to hide behind the veil of its perceived international 

 mandate, a mandate that results in the lowest conrunon management denominator. 



2. The U.S. must assume a leadership role at ICCAT. 



The U.S. could enhance its leadership in ICCAT through four actions: by naming new 

 US commissioners to replace the holdover incumbents, by insisting on management in 

 adherence with credible science, by continuing to call for strong conservation measures, and 

 by promoting the inclusion of NGOs as observers to ICCAT proceedings. 



The present commissioners have presided over the demise of the Atlantic bluefln tuna 

 and have failed to inspire the commission to operate within its legal mandate to manage for 

 maximum sustainable yield. We believe the time has come for ICCAT to set a new course 

 towards species recovery, and it will take a new U.S. captain and crew to make that happen. 



The November meeting will be the last opportunity, prior to the 1994 CITES meeting, 

 for the Commission to take vital action to conserve and restore the severely depleted western 

 Atlantic population of bluefin tuna. Because the U.S. is one of the three principal countries 

 fishing for bluefin tuna in the west Atlantic, the U.S. position and the U.S. commissioners' 

 negotiating strategy will be key to the success or failure of the commission's deliberations. 



The Commission's management frequently goes against the advice of its scientists and 

 does not reflect the available scientific information. The American Fisheries Society, the 

 oldest, most-well respected body of fisheries scientists, has concluded that ICCAT's current 

 management of bluefui poses unacceptable risk. Whether from the conservation side, where 

 the numbers are challenged as too optimistic, or the fishing side, where they are ballyhooed 

 as too pessimistic, confidence in the numbers is absent. The U.S. could, by insisting on 

 improved stock assessments, including mechanisms for gathering fishery-independent 

 information, set the standard for acquisition of better data about the status of fish populations 

 under ICCAT's jurisdiction. Enhanced information would in turn provide the basis from 

 which to challenge the body's continued practice of ignoring its own scientific advisors. 



The U.S. should continue its call for reduced quotas, for aggressive monitoring of 

 trade in fish caught by non-ICCAT nations, heightened scrutiny on the prevalence of 

 infractions of ICCAT measures, and should recommend a moratorium on trade with nations 

 that are not parties to the Convention. 



Finally, ICCAT's exclusion of NGOs is contrary to policies followed by other 

 international organizations and flies in the face of recommendations made at the UN 

 Conference on Environment and Development and the UN Conference on Straddling Stocks 

 and Highly Migratory Fish Species. It sends a signal to the world that the commission is 

 trying to hide from public scrutiny. The U.S., with its tradition of open process, should take 

 the lead in advocating the participation of NGOs as observers at ICCAT meetings. It is 

 through public oversight that decision-making becomes accountable. It is rime for ICCAT to 

 shed its cloak of secrecy. 



3. Recommendations of the Marine Fish Conservation Network for Changes to the FCMA and 

 ATCA 



