Minister Susi to Sink 90 Foreign Illegal Vessels in October

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti said that she would consistently attempt to eradicate illegal fishing throughout Indonesian waters. She said that the vessels that already have legal provisions will soon be sunk.

“There are 90 vessels that will be sunk this year, it will likely to take place in October,” said Susi Pudjiastuti at a public lecture in University of Indonesia on September 12.

Overall, she said, the vessels mostly consist of foreign boats that fly multiple flags during their voyage, that made the authorities difficult to determine the fishing boat’s true origins. “There is a Vietnamese boat that flies a Malaysian flag or a Thailand boat with an African country flag on board,” the minister said.

Read: Minister Susi Cancels Auction of Illegal Fishing Boats

Trespassing boats from Vietnam have the smallest capacity to store their catches, meanwhile, Thailand fishing vessels have much larger capacities. “The type of fishing tool also affects [the amount of fish caught], using a trawl can catch fish from 30 to 70 tons, it could even reach 100 tons,” said Minister Susi Pudjiastuti.

Since 2014, there have been 317 illegal fishing boats that sank under the ministry's order. Other foreign vessels that usually enter Indonesian waters illegally come from Vietnam (144 boats), Philippines (76 boats), Malaysia (50 boats), Thailand (21 boats), Papua New Guinea (two boats), China (one boat), and Belize (one boat).

IRSYAN HASYIM