The Ministry of Fisheries in an effort to protect turtles has so far tagged at least 30 turtles while the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme has tagged a total of 15,000 turtles in the region since 1990.
Permanent Secretary for Fisheries Sanaila Naqali says that this number does not include those that other NGOs has tagged.
Naqali says that people engaging in breaking the moratorium that bans the killing of turtles will face a minimum imprisonment term of 5 years and a penalty of $20,000.
Meanwhile, Naqali says that they are also aware that some people are still selling Kawakawa and Donu.
He says anyone who breaches this regulation will be charged $10,000 while companies engaging in buying or selling Kawakawa and Donu will be fined $20,000.
The Minister for Fisheries and Forests, Semi Koroilavesau is also concerned about people intentionally killing turtles.
He says that it takes 27 to 30 years for turtles to reach an age to reproduce and therefore it is important that we follow the moratorium that is in place to allow them to reproduce.
