Syarief stressed that the activity of Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing is an absolute detrimental to many countries as it undeniably threatens the internal food resilience, which eventually will give a great negative impact to the socio-economic and environmental condition as well as being potential to hamper the marine and fishery development. "Regarding to the vulnerability of the coastal regions and small islands, we have to adhere the related regulations if we conduct a number of physical developments in those areas, which, in this case, is the Regulation No. 27 of 2007 regulating the Management of Coastal Areas and Small Islands (MCASI)," Syarief explained.
To cement their commitment in safeguarding the preservation of the resource in the coastal areas and small islands, MMAF has issued the Regulation of the Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries of Republic of Indonesia No.12/PERMEN-KP/2013 regulating the Monitoring of the Coastal Areas and Small Islands Management, which was signed on June 21, 2013. This regulation aims to ensure the simultaneity and sustainability of the coastal areas and small islands management, improving the community welfare. In addition, the regulation is also built to decrease the aberration of the resource utilization in a number of coastal areas and small islands, which clearly causes the natural resource damage, such as fishing with the use of toxic, explosive and other dangerous materials. "Additionally, the coastal areas and small islands fishermen not only fail to cling to the specified fishing zone management, they also even conduct the fishing activity in the conservation fishing zone," Syarief continued.
Special Police of MCASI
To monitor such special areas like MCASI, the government would also need a special task force, which was finally formed and called Special Police of MCASI (SPM). The SPM is responsible to do patrol in MCASI areas and to handle the reports related to the destruction of the coastal ecosystem, the certain national strategic areas and the resource aberration. If they find out the evidence of the destruction/violation, the SPM will match the suitability of the zone planning document that the suspect possesses with the zone where they get caught. "They are also able to take sample from a crime scene, take information from related parties, and execute the preventing act on the possibility of the regulation violation," Syarief said.
Syarief added, MMAF keeps striving to work closely with the Ministry of Public Works on the handling of the coastal area siltation causing the decrease of the fish auction centers performance. However, this is a complicated issue since the sedimentation level keeps rising due to the coastal denudation in other adjacent areas. Therefore, the government also urges the coastal community to work together on preserving the coastal areas, so that we all can get sustainable benefit.
In this year's Safari Ramadhan, MMAF handed over following items to the Regional Government of DKI Jaya Province and the Cilincing Community :
- The Fishery Rural Mina Enterprise Development (FRMED) Packages of Rp. 1.3 billions to 13 joint venture groups (JVG) in Thousand Islands and to 8 JVGs in North jakarta
- 979 Fishermen Cards;
- 5 Aquaculture Rural Mina Enterprise Development (FRMED) Packages of Rp. 325 millions;
- A donation amounting of Rp. 407 millions, including: 1 cold chain system, 1 consumable product from Facilities and Infrastructures Section (FIS) of North Jakarta and 1 non-consumable product from FIS of North Jakarta;
- The MMAF's Educational, Training and Counseling aid; and
- 200 packages for a number of Mosque Family Council and 200 grocery packages for Fishermen Families.
Editor: PR Wire
Copyright © ANTARA 2013
