1966, Administrative Tribunal of Rennes
"Therefore, this tribunal understands that France was the right side on the matter because lobsters are like fish; we consider that their leaps are swimming and not clinging, as Brazil claims," stated the magistrate.
"With all due respect, if the lobsters' leaps are enough to make them fishes, then we surely must categorize kangaroos as birds because of their hops," argued Admiral Paulo Moreira da Silva, Brazil's Navy expert in the field of oceanography.
No one in the court said anything to his allegation.
1961, Hermes Lima's cabinet
"I think I do not need to say this, but I will say anyway: write the exact words that will dictate to you. Understood?" asked Hermes Lima, Brazilian Foreign Minister.
His secretary nodded. He took a deep breath and began.
"Dear President Charles de Gaulle, I hope this letter finds you well. Regarding our current conflict, the Brazilian Government understands that the lobsters crawl and that their leaps are not swimming, making the crustacean part of Brazil's continental shelf, causing their capture to be illegal without the country's consent. Our Navy gently asked for the French fisherman to leave, but they refused. Brazil is outraged by your decision to support the baseless fisherman claims. I, Hermes Lima, as Brazil's Foreign Minister, like to inform you that the attitude of France is inadmissible, and our Government will not retreat. The lobster will not be caught. Brazil kindly asks France to leave our shores, respect our sovereignty and forbid your fishermen from coming back without prior authorization. Yours truly, Hermes Lima."
The secretary finished writing the moment Lima stopped dictating.
"Give it to me; I will sign, and then you can send it."
1962, Palácio do Planalto
"We gave them 48 hours, right?" Questioned João Goulart, Brazil's president.
Everyone nodded.
"They didn't respect, correct?"
Again, everyone nodded.
Jango, as everyone knew him, sighed, "Capture their ships. They are disrespecting our country and our warnings. If they want a war, they'll have one. But they'll have to fight with one less vessel."
In the room, everyone held their breaths. No one wanted a war, especially against France. At the same time, everyone admired Jango's courage.
Brazil's Navy apprehended the Cassiopée on January 2, 1962.
1963, Palácio do Planalto
"Dear President Charles de Gaulle, I hope this letter finds you well. To avoid the loss of Brazilian and French lives in a conflict, I, João Belchior Marques Goulart, 24th President of Brazil, inform you that from now on, I am doubling Brazil's territorial waters to 200-nautical-mile. I sincerely hope you respect our decision and our sovereignty on this subject. I know this will cause problems with your fishermen, so we are prepared to authorize the hunt of lobsters on Brazilian waters by French fishermen for five years. However, they must provide a portion of the lobsters to Brazilian fishermen. I hope you accept these terms and we can move forward towards peace. Yours truly, João Goulart."
1966, Administrative Tribunal of Rennes
"Therefore, this tribunal understands that France was the right side on the matter because lobsters are like fish; we consider that their leaps are swimming and not clinging, as Brazil claims," stated the magistrate.
"With all due respect, if the lobsters' leaps are enough to make them fishes, then we surely must categorize kangaroos as birds because of their hops," argued Admiral Paulo Moreira da Silva, Brazil's Navy expert in the field of oceanography.
No one in the court said anything to his allegation. After all, even with France considering lobsters as fishes, the French couldn't disrespect Brazil's decision of expanding the country's territorial sea. The court decision was useless, which was a good thing because calling a lobster a fish makes no sense.
THE END
*****
The Lobster War (also known as the Lobster Operation; Portuguese: Guerra da Lagosta; French: Conflit de la langouste) was a dispute over spiny lobsters which occurred from 1961 to 1963 between Brazil and France. The Brazilian government refused to allow French fishing vessels to catch spiny lobsters 100 miles (160 km) off the Brazilian northeast coast, arguing that lobsters "crawl along the continental shelf", while the French maintained that "lobsters swim" and that, therefore, they might be caught by any fishing vessel from any country. The dispute was resolved unilaterally by Brazil, which extended its territorial waters to a 200-nautical-mile (370 km; 230 mi) zone, taking in the disputed lobsters' bed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobster_War
