Fishing industry in the Marshall Islands adjacent to the Marshall Islands Exclusive Economic Zone. The fishery is composed primarily of Chinese-flagged vessels, which are based out of Majuro in the Marshall Islands; there were 11 vessels participating in this high seas fishery in late 2012. There is limited information available on catch levels and rates of taxa that are vulnerable to overexploitation due to their life history characteristics and susceptibility to capture in pelagic longline gear, due to low onboard observer coverage rates. For seabird interactions, based on analysis of Secretariat of the Pacific Community-held observer program data, from 1995-2009, in 203 observed trips, one seabird
Japanese settlement in the Marshall Islands in the corporate, public and political sectors in the country. The earliest Japanese contact with the Marshall Islands dates back to 1884, when a group of pearl divers were blown off course to Lae Atoll during their return voyage from Australia. The pearl divers were believed to be murdered, after the "Ada", a British trading ship sailed past the Marshall Islands and found the skeletal remains of the pearl divers. When news of the purported murder reached the Japanese government, two Japanese envoys–Goto Taketaro (a son of Goto Shojiro) and Suzuki Tsunenori were sent to the Marshall Islands. The envoys