Another "Mexico Advice" thread- Stupid Mex. laws?

[ApneaAddict]

I've got a pair of Mexican law questions. Please correct me if these are rumors rather then factual laws and/or chime in with your opinion/experience with these. Thanks.

The first is, I've heard that in Mexico it is illegal to carry scuba gear and spearfishing gear on the same boat... could this possibly be true!? Seems really stupid and unsafe... what about "spare air"? If you snag an anchor deep or run over a rock and have to work on your hull while at sea... what are you supposed to do!?

Also, I've read that is it unlawful to "clean fish on the vessel from which the fish were caught"... does this mean what it sounds like it means!? Is it as stupid as it seems? Is this a "caught in the act" sort of thing, or could having fillet materials and freshly cleaned fish on the same boat be potentially incriminating in the eyes of the Mex. policia?

Whats the deal with these laws?...

[monster slayer]

Originally Posted by ApneaAddict

I've got a pair of "stupid mexican law" questions. Please correct me if these are rumors rather then factual laws and/or chime in with your opinion/experience with these. Thanks.

The first is, I've heard that in Mexico it is illegal to carry scuba gear and spearfishing gear on the same boat... could this possibly be true!? Seems really stupid and unsafe... what about "spare air"? If you snag an anchor deep or run over a rock and have to work on your hull while at sea... what are you supposed to do!?

Also, I've read that is it unlawful to "clean fish on the vessel from which the fish were caught"... does this mean what it sounds like it means!? Is it as stupid as it seems? Is this a "caught in the act" sort of thing, or could having fillet materials and freshly cleaned fish on the same boat be potentially incriminating in the eyes of the Mex. policia?

Finally, whats the deal with these senseless laws?... *sigh*

it´s illegal to spearfish in scuba period. That law isn´t stupid. You can clean your catch but you are not allowed to fillet your fish aboard in order to avoid illegal catch of protected species. Not stupid at all

[ApneaAddict]

I think you're misunderstanding me. I do not spear on scuba, thats not my thing. My question comes from the fact that I've heard it is illegal to even have scuba gear and spearguns on the same boat at the same time, regardless of whether they were used together. Is this true? If so, how have you guys dealt with this, because it seems unsafe to travel to a foreign island, where you don't always know what the bottom will be like, without any form of back-up incase of a snag.

Whats the difference between "clean" and "fillet" by the law's definition? We're going to eat the fish we spear. Does that mean that in order to not violate this law, we have to go ashore, clean our fish, return to our boat, then cook it? How is that not stupid? What if we clean it in the dingy? Is that legal? I asked because I don't understand the law.

I have no intention of taking protected species or spearing on scuba, we just want to be able to be safe and remain within the law, no need to be defensive.

[MiguelT]

Originally Posted by ApneaAddict

Whats the difference between "clean" and "fillet" by the law's definition?

You can gut it and clean it, but fillets make it difficult to tell the species of the fish, so they're not allowed.

[bbprodive]

If you are going to eat it right away you can fillet it, at least that is always what we have done on the Horizon. We also have SCUBA tanks on the boat, but that may be because of the fact it is a charter operation, with permits to do business in Mexican Waters.

[filletofish]

apnea addict, let me try to answer this from a law enforcement point of view, if you are entering the la jolla preserve with your gun floats and a big yellow, or sea bass from a shore dive but have to swim through the reserve dfg will write you up and its impossible to prove your intentions same with any law you cant prove when or where... another example say you're working on your car and shooting jack daniels, when all of a sudden you decide to take a nap and listen to some music... a cop pulls up or sheriff to just say "hi" he will arrest you for a dui, once again good luck convincing your intentions in court, so its a how you "interpret law" but everything ive seen is you end up paying

[zenspearo]

Apnea,

I've had panga captains from La Paz refuse to let me come along to freedive/spear when my two travel companions want to go out to El Bajo to scuba.

Reason offered: If the panga captain gets caught with scuba tanks and speargun in the same boat, he is in big trouble.

Take it for what it's worth. But if you ever get boarded by the Mexican Navy (not even sure if they care about scuba/spearing but one never knows), it's a pretty intimidating experience and as with situations in MX, it's impossible to tell in advance EXACTLY how the commandant on the scene will interpret the law.

When we went before, we always leave scuba gear back in the States because the prospect of getting my spearguns confiscated or getting accused of breaking the law in some remote part of MX by the local commandante is not something I want to deal with.

[ApneaAddict]

Originally Posted by zenspearo

Apnea,

I've had panga captains from La Paz refuse to let me come along to freedive/spear when my two travel companions want to go out to El Bajo to scuba.

Reason offered: If the panga captain gets caught with scuba tanks and speargun in the same boat, he is in big trouble.

Take it for what it's worth. But if you ever get boarded by the Mexican Navy (not even sure if they care about scuba/spearing but one never knows), it's a pretty intimidating experience and as with situations in MX, it's impossible to tell in advance EXACTLY how the commandant on the scene will interpret the law.

When we went before, we always leave scuba gear back in the States because the prospect of getting my spearguns confiscated or getting accused of breaking the law in some remote part of MX by the local commandante is not something I want to deal with.

Yeah, thats sort of my concern and my feeling...

I understand that it all comes down to interpretation, but my experience in Mexico and with Mexican law is very limited, so I was hoping some of you might know more about the specifics or explain how you dealt with these... puzzling... laws.

[WESTBURY]

At least in Mx they let you talk on your cell phone and drive at the same time.

[MACKFISH]

Yes it is no scuba gear on the boat if you have a speargun on the boat .No fillets on alowed on board unless you are comercial fishing vessel(they are the only ones allowed to fillet on the boat on the water)..U.S fish and game will also ticket you when you come back with fillet from mex water ,because they also enforce all the MEX regs here. Dale (gone to baja )had a special permit to carry scuba with the speargear ,but it was for the camera guy.Good loophole for him.

[pakmat]

Would be tough to tell whether the fish was speared sans tanks or not if you were in possesion.

[baja haha]

It is their LAW obey it or stay home.

There is a mute point to Mexican spear fishing law. The only acceptable power for a spear gun must be rubber power.

No CO2, no cartridge guns, no power heads, no bang sticks (there is a difference.)

[ApneaAddict]

Woah. People seem very defensive. Maybe I shouldn't have put "stupid mex. laws" in the title, seems to rile people up, sorry.

We have no intention of violating the LAW or the law. I posted this because I was hoping some of you might know what the letter of the law actually says (my knowledge of these laws is just hearsay, from when we asked others what regulations we should be aware of).

Is there the equivalent of the California DFG website for Mex, where I could actually look up these laws? We sure as hell don't want any trouble with the law 200 miles from home in a foreign country.

[MACKFISH]

Most places that sell the mex lic. have a brocure with all the rules on it.There is also something else on the regs about useing artificial light to spearfish.

[ApneaAddict]

hm. Ok, that shouldn't be a problem, because i don't think we're planning on doing any night dives and if we do, it would only be for fun, not for fish.

Thanks