8 



their fisheries and ocean resources. Our citizens are not rep- 

 resented in the U.S. Congress and do not vote in national elections. 

 Consequently, our people should retain ownership interest in and 

 primary jurisdiction over the resources of our territorial sea and 

 exclusive economic zone. 



One of the first projects of our commonwealth government was 

 a fisheries development project. In 1979, a small group of local fish- 

 ermen was given use of a war claims tuna vessel, the Motor Vessel 

 Olwol. For reasons that are still mysterious, the NMFS informed 

 our fishermen that their project would violate the Magnuson Act. 

 During a shakedown cruise, the U.S. Coast Guard boarded the ves- 

 sel and ordered it to port. This spelled the end of the venture. Our 

 people were shocked to learn that the Federal Government in- 

 tended to control our waters even to the extent of excluding our 

 own people from fishing in them. 



Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, 12 years ago I sat 

 downstairs in this same building discussing these same issues. 

 President Carter had appointed me to be a member of the Northern 

 Mariana Islands Commission on Federal laws. It was my honor to 

 discuss these issues with my colleagues on the Commission includ- 

 ing such notables as the late Congressman Philip Burton of Califor- 

 nia and Myron Thompson of Hawaii. 



The Commission decided without dissent to recommend to Con- 

 gress that the Magnuson Act not apply to the Commonwealth. 

 More than a decade has passed, the act still applies to our Com- 

 monwealth. 



Some say we should give up, but it is not the same Magnuson 

 Act anymore. Tuna are now included. Before the NMFS was arrest- 

 ing our fishermen while allowing foreign tuna fleets an open season 

 in our waters. Now our people are free to fish in their traditional 

 waters and the Service arrests the unlicensed foreigners. This is 

 progress. At least now they know who to arrest. 



The Magnuson Act still does not work for us. Under the act we 

 cannot generate revenues or collect the kind of data that we need. 

 But more progress is possible. We have admired the management 

 efforts of WESPAC over the years. I, for one, would like to work 

 with WESPAC within the National Fisheries Program under the 

 Magnuson Act, but in fairness, participation should not require 

 surrender of our fishing rights. 



Since the arrest of the Olwol, we have made every effort to strike 

 a workable compromise. After the Commission report, we consulted 

 for more than 5 years with the White House under Section 902 of 

 our Covenant. In 1994, we participated in the Joint Working Group 

 on EEZ Fisheries Policy in the Pacific Insular Areas. Each process 

 has come tantalizingly close to resolving the issue. The Joint Work- 

 ing Group efforts look promising. Several draft amendments to the 

 Magnuson Act for the Pacific Insular Areas have been circulated. 



A recent draft would allow the Governors of the Pacific Insular 

 Area to request the Secretary of State to negotiate an international 

 Fisheries Agreement for the adjacent EEZ and to participate in 

 those negotiations. We could operate a permit system for the do- 

 mestic fishing by agreement with the Secretary of Commerce. Co- 

 operative enforcement would be encouraged and fees would be paid 

 to the Insular Area Government. Unfortunately, these proposals 



