Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

Wild ocean chase ends as gunboat fires in ambush

FORTY-ONE Australian Navy and Army special forces soldiers ambushed a trawler after a dramatic chase across the Southern Ocean from Australia to Africa.

The high-seas pursuit began when a fish-poaching vessel, the South Tomi, made a run for it after being apprehended by an Australian Fisheries ship off the coast of Heard Island, about 2000 nautical miles south-west of Fremantle.

The Spanish-owned, Togo-registered South Tomi was loaded with 90 tonnes of fish worth $1 million. The fish included the rare and protected Patagonian toothfish, illegally caught within the Australian 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone.

The Australian Fisheries ship, the Southern Supporter, chased the poachers for 10 days.

While the South Tomi headed for its home port in South Africa, an advance party of three Royal Australian Navy and SAS personnel flew to Johannesburg by commercial jet, followed a day later by 38 other defence personnel.

The Australians then flew to Cape Town, embarked on a South African Navy frigate, and waited in ambush for the poachers.

Shots were fired when the poachers refused to surrender, said Australia's Defence Minister, Peter Reith. "The South Africans were prepared to put a warning shot across the bow," he said.

Australian officials will register a complaint with their Spanish counterparts, as they have done with other countries, including Argentina and Britain, whose boats have been caught poaching.

Australia's maritime commander, Rear-Admiral Geoff Smith, said the South Tomi was first sighted on March 29 by an Australian Fisheries vessel, which was in 'hot pursuit' of it for more than 2000 nautical miles as it headed across the Indian Ocean towards South Africa. He said the operation to board the vessel included the Australian Fisheries Management Agency, the Australian Defence Force and the South African National Defence Force.

"The ADF negotiated with the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) who were incredibly co-operative," he said.

All 41 Australian personnel were on board the South African survey ship Protea, accompanied by a patrol boat Galeshewe.

On Thursday night, the ships intercepted the South Tomi about 216 nautical miles south of Cape Town. Sixteen of the Australians, including armed SAS troopers and fisheries personnel, boarded the vessel without meeting resistance.

Twenty-five RAN seamen boarded her for the journey back to Fremantle.

The ADF is now escorting the South Tomi back to Western Australia where the 44 crew will be prosecuted under Australian law. The boat could be confiscated.