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Cambodia Condemns Thai Military Attack on Preah Vihear Temple | Cambodia Confirms Troops Still Holding Mount Trop as Thailand Cannot Raise Flag on Sovereign Territory | Cambodia and Thailand Clashes Enter Third Day as Casualties Rise to 33 | UN Security Council Urges Restraint as Thailand-Cambodia Clashes Intensify | Cambodia Condemns Thai Aggression at UN, Calls for Ceasefire and International Intervention | Techo Hun Sen Advises Military Strategy Amidst Border Clashes with Thailand | 45 Staff Rescued After Being Trapped at Preah Vihear Temple Amidst Clashes | BREAKING: Cambodia Denies Firing Projectiles into Laos, Accuses Thailand of Disinformation | Cambodia's Tourism Ministry Seeks Aid for Troops, Refugees; Reaffirms Commitment to Peace | BREAKING: Laos Denies Border Clash with Cambodia; Cambodia Rejects Thai Accusations of Shelling Laos | BREAKING NEWS: Andrew MacGregor Marshall Claims Queen Mother Sirikit Has Died, Alleging Concealment by Thai Authorities | TOP NEWS: Trump Claims Diplomatic Role in Cambodia-Thailand Border Conflict, Calls for Ceasefire | TOP NEWS: Cambodian Prime Minister Confirms President Donald Trump Ceasefire Agreement with Thailand | Thai Military of Escalating Attacks, Despite Cambodia Ceasefire Efforts | BREAKING NEWS: Cambodia and Thailand Agree to Malaysian Mediation Amid Escalating Border Clashes | Ministry of Education Announces Postponement of 2025 Baccalaureate Examination | Cambodian Community in Korea Holds Mass Protest Against Thailand’s Invasion | Techo Hun Sen: “In Times of National Crisis, We Have No Right to Rest or Fall Ill” | UN Secretary-General and Cambodian Officials Call for Immediate Ceasefire Amid Border Clashes | Lieutenant General Duong Samnieng Dies Fighting Thai Invaders at Preah Vihear | BREAKING NEWS: Prime Minister Hun Manet to Lead Cambodian Delegation to Kuala Lumpur for Special Meeting on Ceasefire | Secretary Rubio Calls for Immediate De-escalation in Cambodia-Thailand Border Dispute |

WWF Asks Fisheries Officials to Crack Down on Illegal Fishing in Protected Areas

PHNOM PENH: A week after the death of several dolphins, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in Cambodia has asked fisheries officials to patrol and punish perpetrators engaged in illegal fishing in the dolphin conservation area. Most of the dolphins were found to have died because of fishing nets and hooks.

In just one week, from 18-24 December, three dolphins were found dead in Cambodia. An adult male dolphin was found dead in the river near Koh Dambang at the border between Kratie and Stung Treng provinces on 18 December, and two more were found dead floating in the water in Kratie province, due to fishing nets and fishing rods. The three dead dolphins were all adults at reproductive age.

WWF considers the deaths of the three dolphins requisites an emergency call for urgent law enforcement measures to be implemented at dolphin sanctuaries. The organization urges all authorities to strictly enforce the law. There is an urgent need to increase day and night patrols to protect the remaining dolphins from dying due to illegal fishing at dolphin sanctuaries.

WWF-Cambodia Director, Seng Teak, has stated that an increase in illegal fishing activities in the dolphin sanctuary could lead to the extinction of Mekong dolphins if no immediate action is taken to stop them. The deaths of three breeding dolphins in less than 10 days should be taken as a message to authorities at all levels to increase the presence of law enforcement officials in the sanctuary.

"There is no other option but to strictly enforce the law immediately to completely stop all forms of illegal activity in the area where dolphins live," he said.

He urged all relevant fisheries and law enforcement officials to patrol the dolphin area regularly, especially to punish those who commit illegal fishing or other fishing offenses in the dolphin conservation area as a warning to other illegal fishermen to stop those illegal activities.

The WWF-Cambodia director stressed that if this illegal fishing continues, the number of dolphins could be lost in the near future.

Secretary of State and Spokesperson for the Ministry of Environment, Net Pheaktra, said that dolphins are considered a living national heritage of Cambodia and only about 89 remain in the Mekong River from Kratie to Stung Treng.

He said that the Mekong River freshwater dolphin is on the list of the greatest biodiversity resources in the Mekong Delta. An inter-ministerial working group led by the Ministry of Environment is preparing to submit the prepared list for UNESCO to consider.

"Every year, many dolphins are found dead, some trapped by fishing nets and others by shock, so join in on Cambodian dolphin conservation and other biodiversity conservation so that Cambodia can preserve its natural value," he said.

The Spokesperson for the Ministry of Environment stresses that the zero-trap campaign launched by the Ministry of Environment is not only for the protection of animals on land and in the air, but also in the water, so conservation is needed.

"In the past, I said that the Zero Trap campaign was not only focused on land and air, but also water traps. I urge people not to enter the restricted area of the dolphin sanctuary, because we have only 89 left. If the dolphins continue to die and have few offspring, at some point we will lose them," he said

It should be noted that in the last three years, a total of 29 dolphins have died, while in 2022, a total of 11 dolphins died.



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