Hundreds of fishermen in Java to be relocated

AMBON, Maluku: Hundreds of fishermen from the north coast of Java will soon be relocated to Southeast and Southwest Maluku districts, Maluku province, Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Rochmin Dahuri said here on Friday.

"The number of fishermen along Java's north coast is increasing while their fishing grounds are diminishing, so relocation to Maluku is inevitable," Dahuri said.

He said distribution of the fishermen throughout Indonesia should be carried out fairly in order to avoid illegal fishing by foreign fishermen.

Indonesia, according to the maritime affairs and fisheries minister, has some four million fishermen, 50 percent of whom operate off Java.

"Rather than competing for their catch on the north coast of Java but remaining in poverty, it would be better for them to be relocated to other areas outside Java that offer more prospects," Rochmin noted.

However, he said, he would not force fishermen to enter the relocation program, which would be carried out by the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration. -- Antara