Captains declared suspects over fatal collision in Java Sea
ID Nugroho, The Jakarta Post, Surabaya
The captains of two ships that collided in waters off Gresik regency, East Java, last month are being detained as suspects in the accident, in which three people died, officials said on Wednesday.
The two captains, Luh Jin You of Taiwan and Harijono of Indonesia, could have their captain's licenses revoked if they are found guilty of negligence that led to the deadly collision, head of East Java's sea traffic office I Nyoman Gede Saputra said at Tanjung Perak Port, Surabaya.
"The harshest sentence that could be handed down is the revocation of their licenses and the imposing of fines if they are found guilty by the Maritime Court," he said.
On Sept. 26, three people died and 16 others injured after cargo ship the Uni Glory rammed into passenger ship KM Mandiri Nusantara off the coast of Gresik.
The three dead people -- Fitri, 6, her mother Sundari, 50, and Iwan Gunawan, 30 -- were passengers of KM Mandiri Nusantara.
Rescue teams had to use heavy equipment to cut through the wreckage of the passenger ship to recover their bodies, which were found under metal debris.
Five of the injured are still being treated at Dr. Sutomo General Hospital and the Surabaya harbor hospital for severe injuries.
Chief of East Java's water police directorate Adj. Sr. Comr. Rudy Kussoy said the two charged captains had been held at his office since last Friday.
The charges followed the questioning of on-duty navigation officers and engineers of the ships, he added.
"There is sufficient evidence to detain them as suspects," Rudy said, adding that the Taiwanese representative office in Jakarta had been advised of the Taiwanese captain's predicament.
However, Nyoman questioned the legality of the water police charging the captains.
"Why so fast. As far as I know, the water police have no authority to declare them suspects. The charges should be based on an investigation by port authorities, the National Transportation Accident Committee (KNKT) and the Maritime Court," he argued.
Nyoman said it was unfitting that the water police had decided to lay charges.
"Perhaps they used the Criminal Code for the basis of their decision. But the proper agency to handle such an accident is the Maritime Court."
He said an adverse reaction by the international shipping community to a deviation in procedure could affect Indonesia's maritime affairs.
"The maritime world has the same regulations on shipping. That's why the Maritime Court should handle this case," Nyoman said.
KM Mandiri Nusantara, which travels between Balikpapan and Surabaya, was on its way to Tanjung Perak Port, while the Uni Glory had just set sail from the Surabaya container terminal when the accident occurred.
The collision left a 20-meter-long gash on the starboard side of the passenger ship, while the cargo ship escaped any major damage. Vehicles and cargo aboard the passenger ship could be seen through the gash.