In my talk, I raised the question of whether the definition of illegal fishing should be broadened to include crimes not just against fish but also against the people doing the fishing. After all, beating crews, not paying them, and depriving them of the right to leave are practices that allow for the artificially reduced cost and competitive advantage that illicit operators have in poaching, I contended. The audience, which consisted largely of people focused on environmental issues and not human rights, reacted to the idea with polite clapping.
