Wimol Jantrarotai has been removed from his post as the director general of the Thailand Department of Fisheries following a warning from the European Commission stating that it is still considering issuing a red card to the country for its ineffectiveness at tamping out illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha transferred Jantrarotai to an inactive post in his office on 20 April in advance of a planned progress report to be delivered to the European Commission in May, according to The Nation. The article cites Vice Admiral Jumpol Lumpikanon, spokesman for the Command Centre for Combating Illegal Fishing (CCCIF), as saying the transfer was made in order to select a new director-general with greater experience in international affairs, “as the deadline for reporting the progress to the EU is near.”
Thailand was given a yellow card by the European Commission nearly one year ago for its “inadequate fisheries legal framework and poor monitoring, control and traceability systems.” Concerns the country will receive a red card – which would prohibit it from exporting seafood to the European Union – increased 21 April when the European Commission issued a press release criticizing Thailand’s reform efforts.
According to the release, “Dialogue is proving difficult and there remain serious concerns about the steps taken by Thailand to fight IUU fishing activities. This means that further action by the Commission cannot be ruled out.”
Deputy director-general Adisorn Promthep has taken over Jantrarotai’s former role, according to the Bangkok Post. The newspaper reported Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Chatchai Sarikulya said Jantrarotai was replaced because “he has made slow progress and several targets have not been reached” and said Jantrarotai “tended to take an academic approach,” resulting in a lack of cooperation between the Thai navy and the Fisheries Department. The article also reported Jantrarotai and Promthep did not get along well.
A separate Bangkok Post article, published 23 April, revealed new criticisms from the European Union regarding Thailand’s lack of progress on fisheries reforms and its ongoing media push, which Adela Rey and Olalla Perez, representatives of the European Commission's Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, deemed “a propaganda campaign.”
