Petition

(C) Greenpeace

"It's all about bargaining leverage," says James Movick, Chairman of the Offshore Fishers Association, explaining why the US government can require objective observers on almost all fishing boats in its waters, while Pacific island states are lucky to cover even five percent of the boats fishing in their Exclusive Economic Zones. Simply put, many foreign boats don't want the increased scrutiny, and their home countries have the political and economic mussel to back them up.

There's aid money, there's development projects, potential investments, joint ventures, and so on - a lot of leverage that can be applied against delegates from Pacific island states at international negotiations.

By signing this petition you give a little leverage back to the people of the Pacific. If you're from a country that buys fish from here, or operates boats in the region, then Greenpeace lobbyists will be able to tell delegates, "Look, even people from your own country want to crack down on pirate fishing". If you're from the Pacific island, this petition is one way to tell your delegates that you support them.

Sign the petition.

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p.s. You can also collect signatures from your friends. If you get the most online signatures, you win a very cool prize - a hand painted tapa cloth, made here in the islands - as a way for the people here to say thank you.