Croatian ship owner to take RI to court
Croatian ship owner to take RI to court
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The owner of a Croatian-flagged cargo ship threatened to take the
Indonesian government to an international maritime court a day
after the Indonesian Navy stormed the vessel and detained 17 crew
members at gunpoint.
"We will file a suit with the (International) Maritime
Court," said Agoes Salim Dunda, a representative of the owners of
the log carrier, the MV Mirna Rijeka in Jakarta.
"The High Court already said the ship was free to sail, but the
ship and crew are still being detained. Government officials and
prosecutors are not abiding by their own laws," he said on
Wednesday.
The Croatian ship has been involved in a lengthy legal battle
with Indonesian officials since August 2004. The Navy stopped the
vessel in Papua in August after it took on a consignment of logs.
A statement from the Croatian authorities said that the ship
had been detained for having incorrect documentation.
But the case widened to include alleged illegal logging and
was brought to court in April. Minister of Forestry Malam Sambat
Kaban said that the vessel had been carrying some 15,000 cubic
meters of illegal logs when it was detained.
The East Java High Court, however, ruled in favor of the
company in May, and ordered the Navy to escort it from the port
city of Surabaya to international waters.
However, the Navy prevented it from leaving following an order
from the prosecutor's office. Attorney General Abdul Rahman
Saleh said that his office had decided to appeal to the Supreme
Court against the high court's decision.
On Tuesday, 200 navy personnel boarded the ship. During the
incident, a gun was reportedly held at the captain's head. Twelve
armed men remained on the vessel Wednesday, preventing the 17
crew members from leaving.
Capt. Joso Nekic told The Associated Press that things had
calmed down in the last 24 hours.
Abdul M. Saleh, a Navy spokesman, said that the Navy was only
protecting evidence until the legal process was finished. He
also dismissed reports that the Navy had threatened the ship's
captain.
Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security
Affairs Widodo Adi Sucipto said on Wednesday that the vessel
would continue to be detained until the judicial process had been
completed.
"If the legal process finds that no crime has been
perpetrated, then we will order the Indonesian eastern fleet
command to release the vessel so as avoid disrupting bilateral
relations," he told reporters.
Widodo said that releasing the ship before the completion of the legal
process would give the impression that foreign ships could enter
Indonesian waters without proper documentation.
The government says it has declared war against illegal
logging, particularly in Papua, which environmentalists say has
been a major source of illegal logs smuggled to China and Europe.