Section 17: Landing, possession and sale of fish

17. Landing, possession and sale of fish (1) Subject to subsection (3), no person shall land or cause any person to land, sell or have in his possession in Mauritius or in the maritime zones— (a) any toxic fish; (b) any fish or fish product, which is unfit for human consumption; (c) any marine turtle whether dead or alive, marine turtle eggs, stuffed marine turtle; (d) any marine mammal; (e) any undersized fish; or (f) any crab or lobster in the berried state. (2) No person shall land, sell or have in his possession any fish which he knows or has reasonable cause to believe has been taken in contravention of any international fishery conservation and management measure to which Mauritius is a party. (3) The Permanent Secretary may issue an authorisation, in writing, and subject to such terms and conditions as he may impose, for the capture, landing or possession of any fish specified in subsection (1) (a) to (f) for scientific or conservation purposes. [Issue 2] F15 – 16 Revised Laws of Mauritius (4) Where a fishery control officer is satisfied that subsection (1) (c), (d), (e) or (f) or (2) has been contravened, he shall order any fish the subject matter of the contravention to be seized. (5) Where a fishery control officer is satisfied that any fish referred to in subsection (1) (a) or (b) is being landed or sold, or offered for sale or supplied by any person, or is in possession of any person, he shall order the fish to be seized and destroyed. (6) The owner of any fish seized under subsection (4) or destroyed under subsection (5) shall not be entitled to any compensation.