Foreign ships warned

Foreign ships warned

JAKARTA (JP): Director General of Sea Transportation Soentoro
has said he will take legal action against foreign shipping
companies and their agents which transport cargo or pick up empty
containers at undesignated domestic ports.

Soentoro said he would not hesitate to revoke the shipping
permits of domestic firms which acted as the agents of foreign
vessels, if they violated this ruling.

Under government regulations, foreign vessels are not allowed
to transport cargo or empty containers between domestic ports
where they are only scheduled to unload or berth.

"The rules may seem very strict, but actually it is quite
common because most international shipping rules apply this
principle of cabotage," Soentoro said, reported Bisnis Indonesia.

He said that by complying with the regulations, cargo and
empty container traffic would flow smoothly.

He expected this would also help to increase the amount of
domestic cargo transported by Indonesian fleets to about 70
percent in the next two years.

Currently, about 84.3 million tons, or 54.5 percent of
domestic cargo is carried by Indonesian vessels and the remaining
70.3 million tons, or 45.5 percent, is transported by foreign
vessels.

"I have asked provincial and local staffer of the ministry and
those working at ports to keep a close watch on the activities of
foreign ships," he said. (pwn)