Antara 31 Dec 15;
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian authorities will, on Thursday, sink 10 fishing boats caught poaching in Indonesian waters.
The Task Force of Eradication of Illegal Fishing, or "Satgas 115," would sink the 10 boats, the maritime affairs and fisheries ministry said in a statement, here, Thursday.
The boats would be sunk in four different locations in the country: one in Belawan (North Sumatra), one in Tarempa, Batam (Riau Islands), two in Tarakan (North Kalimantan), and six in Tahuna (North Sulawesi).
The ministry recently deployed four additional patrol boats to strengthen law enforcement activities against foreign vessels found poaching in Indonesian waters.
The ministry currently has a total of 31 patrols boats to guard the Indonesian waters against poachers.
Indonesia has incurred material losses and environmental damage due to illegal fishing activities mostly conducted by foreign fishing boats in its maritime territory.
Therefore, Indonesia has vowed to impose stringent sanctions against the perpetrators of the crimes to serve as a deterrent to other poachers.
The authorities have detained 177 fishing boats for poaching in Indonesian waters.
Of the 177 boats, 107 have been sunk or destroyed, including 103 foreign fishing boats, the secretary general of the maritime affairs and fisheries ministry, Sjarif Widjaja, said in a press conference, here, on Tuesday.
The destroyed foreign boats were 21 from Thailand, 34 from the Philippines, six from Malaysia, 39 from Vietnam, one from China, and two from Papua New Guinea.
(Uu.F001/INE/KR-BSR)
Navy sinks 10 more ships as 2015 draws to a close
Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post 2 Jan 16;
The Navy sunk 10 more illegal fishing boats on New Year’s Eve, a moved aimed at further proving that the country is serious about promoting its territorial integrity.
“We remain consistent, so anyone violating our laws should receive harsh punishment,” Navy spokesperson Commander M. Zainuddin said in Jakarta on Thursday.
Zainuddin said that out of the 10 illegal boats, four were foreign boats flying Philippine and Malaysian flags, while six boats flew Indonesian flags but had foreign crews.
The Navy sank the boats in the four different locations; in Tarakan, North Kalimantan, Beting Camar, Belawan in North Sumatra, in Ranai, Riau Islands, and in Tahuna, North Sulawesi.
Zainuddin said the Navy had received a court order to carry out its task and that the decision to sink the boats was based on allegations that they did not have the necessary documents to run their
fishing operations in Indonesian waters.
The Navy also involved the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry and Anti-Illegal Fishing Task Force (Satgas 115) in their operations against illegal fishing activities.
According to ministry data, the country caught 157 illegal fishing boats in 2015, 107 of which have been sunk.
The largest number of the boats came from Vietnam, with 39 boats, followed by the Philippines with 34 boats, Thailand with 21 boats, Malaysia with six boats, Papua New Guinea with one boat and China with one boat.
Article 69 of Law No. 45/2009 on fisheries stipulates that the coast guard can sink foreign vessels operating illegally in the country’s territorial waters with sufficient preliminary evidence.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is leading the campaign against illegal fishing and has said that it costs the country billions of dollars in lost revenue every year.
Meanwhile, Satgas 115 director Rear Admiral Widodo said that Indonesia would continue to be the target of illegal fishing activity.
“Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam need huge amounts of fish, but they don’t have the supply, so their fishermen try to meet demand by conducting illegal fishing activities in our area,” Widodo said on Thursday.
Widodo said that his unit would step up its efforts by conducting more patrols, including air surveillance operations.
“Ibu [Minister Susi Pudjiastuti] has said that Satgas should step up air patrols. We expect zero violations this year,” Widodo said.
