Government to charge foreign fishing ships

SEMARANG (JP): Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Sarwono Kusumaatmadja said on Saturday that the government was considering imposing a levy on foreign ships seeking a license to fish in Indonesia's economy exclusive zone (ZEE).

Sarwono said foreign vessels were currently free to fish in the zone since the government lifted the ban in the 1980s.

"About 250 Chinese ships are willing to pay US$100,000 a year each if they are allowed to fish in our waters," Sarwono told reporters on the sidelines of his visit to PT Aquafarm Nusantara in the Central Java town of Klaten.

"From Chinese vessels alone, we could earn at least US$25 million annually," he added.

His ministry estimated that about 3,000 ships with Korean, Taiwanese and Japanese flags fish illegally in Indonesian waters.

Rampant illegal fishing by foreign vessels, according to Sarwono, was mainly due to poor permit administration.

Sarwono was confident that the ships, given their more sophisticated equipment, could earn more than Indonesian fishermen.

"Our fishermen can collect four million tons of fish annually. We have detected about one million tons of fish are stolen by foreign ships every year, but I believe that figure is a lot higher."

He also disclosed on Saturday that about 17,000 tons of karang (coral) fish were smuggled out of Indonesia to Hong Kong annually.

This fish is valued at US$40 per kilogram in the international market, Sarwono said.

The fish are smuggled live into the country in containers and then cooked on order at Hong Kong restaurants.

Sarwono further blamed lenient law enforcement for rampant illegal fishing and smuggling, saying "judges here only hand down the lightest sentences according to the Fishery Law".

"I hope law enforcers become more stringent," he said.

He agreed to suggestions that foreign ships caught fishing illegally in Indonesian waters should be "destroyed" to avoid any compromises.

Many have reported that foreign ships were previously released after they paid a fine to the authorities, Sarwono said.

"But I hope the situation is much better now since we heard that more foreign ships were impounded. With stricter law enforcement in the fisheries sector, we hope that sea exploration and our fisheries can move ahead too," he told reporters. (har/emf)