This is a mode that is often used, they try to escape our legal snares by fleeing to the overlapping claim area, even though they are fishing in Indonesian watersJakarta (ANTARA) - Officials from the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) have captured an illegal fishing vessel bearing a Malaysian flag in the 571 Fisheries Development Area of the Republic of Indonesia (WPPNRI) in Malacca Strait.
"The surveillance operation by KP Hiu 16 caught one illegal foreign fishing vessel operating trawling gear in the Malacca Strait on September 6 (2021)," director general of marine and fishery resources supervision of KKP, Adin Nurawaluddin, said in a press release on Friday.
The arrest of the perpetrators near the overlapping claim area shows the readiness of the Directorate General of Marine and Fishery Resources Supervision (PSDKP) of the KKP in guarding areas prone to illegal fishing in Indonesian waters, he remarked.
The Malaysian-flagged boat, PK 6911F, had six crew members on board, who were all Myanmar nationals, he informed adding, they were arrested for fish theft in the Malacca Strait.
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Currently, as an ad hoc arrangement, the ship has been sent to the Belawan PSDKP Station for further legal process, Nurawaluddin said.
The boat crew had tried to make an escape towards the unresolved maritime boundaries and had to be chased by KP Hiu 16, he added.
"This is a mode that is often used, they try to escape our legal snares by fleeing to the overlapping claim area, even though they are fishing in Indonesian waters," he explained.
Meanwhile, KKP's fleet monitoring and operations director, Pung Nugroho Saksono, said that law enforcement in the Malacca Strait presents its own challenges due to the existence of this gray area.
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It is known that there are maritime boundaries between Indonesia and Malaysia that have not been agreed upon, he noted. The two countries have agreed to carry out eviction measures if there is a violation in the maritime boundary overlapping area between the two countries.
"For the unresolved maritime boundaries area, we are intensively cooperating with the Malaysian authorities, especially the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (APMM), but we are certainly firm in preventing any parties from trying to take advantage of this," Saksono said.
Furthermore, the cooperation with law enforcement officers from Malaysia in the gray area is meant to benefit fishermen from both countries, he added.
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"This cooperation should not weaken the eradication of illegal fishing in the Malacca Strait, but instead must bring benefits to us, therefore if it is clear that it is stealing in our territory, we will continue to pursue it," he remarked.
So far this year, KKP has seized 135 vessels – 88 Indonesian fishing vessels for violating provisions and 47 foreign fishing vessels for stealing fish. The foreign fishing vessels captured by KKP include 16 Malaysian-flagged vessels, 6 Philippine-flagged vessels, and 25 Vietnamese-flagged vessels.
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Translator: M Razi R, Resinta S
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
