Exclusive zone, territorial claims

Exclusive zone, territorial claims

From Kompas

An article in Kompas daily (March 7) written by I Basis Susilo
noted that Indonesia's loss of Sipadan and Ligitan islands was
due to the lack of a continuous presence, effective settlement
and guarantee for nature conservation on border islands.

In his book, Indonesia's exclusive economic zone and
continental shelf, First Adm. (ret) Adi Sumardiman, among others,
mentions two countries with traditional rights over areas within
the Indonesian exclusive economic zone.

Malaysia has rights over the South China Sea, based on the
Record of Discussion supplemented to the Indonesia-Malaysia
agreement of Feb. 25, 1982, and Papua New Guinea has rights over
the Pacific Ocean, north of West Irian province, based on the
maritime border agreement of Dec. 11, 1980.

Traditional rights mean the rights of traditional fishermen of
Malaysia and Papua New Guinea to fish within the territory of the
Indonesian exclusive economic zone. If their fishermen are
engaged in organized activities and have settled on border
islands in the Natuna or Riau archipelagoes, some day Malaysia
may claim them, as in the case of Sipadan and Ligitan.

The question is whether there is already a concrete concept
for the central government and regional administrations to
monitor the fishermen's activities, as well as the Indonesia-
Malaysia and Indonesia-Papua New Guinea borders. It is hoped the
relevant authorities will clarify this matter.

NASIKIN, Jakarta