Fishing Vessel Arrested
The KKP patrol boat has again secured at least five Filipino vessels carrying out illegal fishing in the Indonesian Sulawesi Sea. Previously, the KKP also arrested a Vietnamese foreign ship in North Natuna.
Throughout 2023, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries has arrested 8 foreign fishing vessels carrying out illegal fishing in Indonesia. The other two are Malaysian ships.
In addition to the increasing prevalence of illegal fishing foreign vessels in Indonesia, the mode used by KIA is also new. Like the five Filipino vessels that were caught by the KKP in Sulawesi recently, turning a pump boat into a light boat to attract fish.
WALHI Indonesia asked the government to immediately carry out diplomacy with the relevant countries.
The practice of illegal fishing in the Indonesian Sea is again rife. Moreover, extreme weather in some areas has begun to subside. This condition prompted foreign fishing vessels to return to action in carrying out illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU fishing).
This is evidenced by the increasing number of foreign fishing vessels (KIA) caught by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) patrol boats in Indonesian seas. Not long ago, Monday, March 27 2023, the KKP arrested a Vietnamese-flagged vessel caught stealing fish in the North Natuna Sea.
The ship named TG 9817 TS was caught red-handed laying a pair trawl net in the Natuna Sea. Apart from not having a license, this ship also operates destructive fishing gear. Some of the fish they caught were found on the boat.
In total, 13 Filipino nationals secured the five fishing boats from the Philippines. KKP patrol officers also secured a number of pieces of evidence, including approximately 500 kg of fish caught, consisting of tuna, skipjack and squid. Furthermore, the five ships were escorted to the Bitung PSDKP Base, North Sulawesi, for further investigation.
Regarding the ship's evidence, which is currently still under investigation, Adin said that according to the direction of the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, efforts to enforce the law against perpetrators of illegal fishing can improve the welfare of fishermen. One of them is the use of ships seized by the state to be granted to fishermen groups. "The Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries will encourage the captured vessels to be used for fishermen," said Adin.
With the arrest of these six vessels, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries has arrested 33 illegal fishing vessels in 2023. The vessels arrested consist of 25 Indonesian fishing vessels that do not comply with regulations and 8 foreign fishing vessels stealing fish in Indonesian waters (2 vessels with Malaysian flags) , 1 Vietnamese-flagged ship, and 5 Philippine-flagged ships).
"Sea siskamling monitoring operations as part of an integrated surveillance system supported by monitoring technology in Fisheries Management Areas (WPP) have proven successful. Our commitment to surveillance at sea will never be empty," said Adin. In addition, at the 2023 Maritime and Fisheries Resources Technical Work Meeting, his party also announced that in the future the KKP would strengthen the Maritime and Fisheries Monitoring Vessel fleet with new, more capable weapons as a strategy to eradicate illegal fishing.
WALHI Indonesia's National Executive Coastal and Sea Campaign Manager Parid Ridwanuddin said illegal fishing cases have never stopped in Indonesia. According to Parid, the government is not only addressing this problem by making arrests, but also diplomacy with the countries concerned. The Indonesian government must carry out diplomacy with Asian countries, both soft and hard diplomacy," he told Mongabay Indonesia recently.