The Supreme Court has declared unconstitutional a Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) order that required commercial fishing vessels to undergo round-the-clock electronic monitoring.
In a decision written by Associate Justice Maria Filomena Singh, the High Court said Fisheries Administrative Order 266 went beyond what the law allows and violated the rights of commercial fishing operators.
“In every instance when the Court is confronted with the need to weigh a State interest against the sacrosanct rights of its people, the scales must always tip in favor of the protection of the latter if the State interest can be preserved through lawful and less restrictive means,” the Court said.
The case was filed by several fishing companies that opposed the order requiring a 24/7 Vessel Monitoring System and Electronic Reporting System. They argued that the data being collected included confidential business information and trade secrets.
The Supreme Court agreed that some of the required information was protected proprietary data and said the monitoring system was too intrusive. It also found that BFAR has other ways to monitor illegal fishing without requiring constant tracking of fishing vessels.
While the Court recognized BFAR’s goal of fighting illegal fishing, it ruled that the government must enforce the law without violating the constitutional rights of those engaged in legitimate fishing operations.IMT
