Chinese fishing vessel capsizes in Indian Ocean, 39 people missing

On Tuesday, around 3 a.m. Beijing time, a Chinese ship capsized in the waters of the Indian Ocean. On board were 17 Chinese, 17 Indonesian and 5 Filipino sailors, state broadcaster CCTV reported, bringing the number of missing to 39.

"So far, no missing person has been found," CCTV reported. The Chinese media added that Chinese President Xi Jinping had ordered the launch of an international search and rescue operation to find the 39 crew members of the Chinese fishing vessel.

Rescuers from Australia and several other countries arrived at the scene of the sinking and China deployed two commercial vessels to assist in search operations, the channel said. Beijing has launched an emergency package involving embassies and consulates in Australia, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Indonesia, the Philippines and other countries.

"Strengthening the management of fishing vessels"

"It is necessary to strengthen the safety management of fishing vessels at sea and implement preventive measures to ensure the safety of maritime transport," Premier Li Qiang said.

The vessel was owned by Penglai Jinglu Fishery Co, a Chinese fishing company, and was licensed to fish for flying squid and Pacific sardines, according to data from the North Pacific Fisheries Commission. It left Cape Town, South Africa, on May 5, en route to Busan, South Korea, according to tracking site Marine Traffic, which last located the ship on May 10 southeast of Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean.

China has the largest deep-sea fishing fleet in the world. In 2017, Beijing pledged to limit its fleet to 3,000 vessels, after controversies over overfishing by Chinese vessels.

The large number of fishing vessels also poses a risk to the people on board. Two Chinese crew members died in April when their ship sank off the Philippines.