39 RI fisherman on trial in KL court

39 RI fisherman on trial in KL court

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): A Malaysian court commenced on Tuesday the
trial of 39 Indonesian fishermen arrested after a two-hour sea
chase during which the Malaysian navy fired on their boat,
killing one crew member.

The Indonesian government has lodged an official protest about
the shooting on Feb. 2, interception of the boat and subsequent
arrest of the crew, which it said was inside Indonesian waters at
the time.

Malaysia said the incident happened within its territorial
waters and the patrol boat was forced to open fire when the
trawler tried to ram it.

The 39 men are charged with illegal fishing and refusing
demands to stop their vessel. The offenses were allegedly
committed in the Strait of Malacca, 49 nautical miles off the
island of Langkawi.

Assistant fisheries officer Shamsudin Othman told the
magistrates' court in Langkawi that his department had never
licensed foreign fishermen to fish in Malaysian waters.

Shamsudin was shown a letter authorizing fishing which was
issued by the Indonesian Fisheries Directorate-General to the
company which owned the trawler.

Shamsudin, who was quoted by Bernama news agency, said he had
never seen the document before and it was not issued by his
department.

Cross-examined by defense counsel Mohamed Rawi Abdul Hamid,
Shamsudin also reportedly said he did not know about the United
Nations Convention on fisheries.

The magistrate adjourned the case until next Monday but
refused a bail application on behalf of three under-age crew
members.

Observing the trial were H. Nurdin Harahap, head of the
Indonesian Fishermen's Association, and a legal officer from the
Indonesian Maritime Department, Chandra Motik Yusuf Djemat.