ICCAT plans to boycott RI tuna products
ICCAT plans to boycott RI tuna products
Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Members of the International Commission for the Conservation of
Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) are threatening to launch an embargo
against Indonesian tuna products over alleged improper fishing
practices, according to Minister of Maritime Affairs and
Fisheries Rokhmin Dahuri.
"We received embargo threats from the ICCAT members via the
Japanese government on Feb. 28 and Aug. 29," Rokhmin told the
House of Representatives' Commission III on agriculture, maritime
affairs and forestry on Monday.
He said that the embargo threats came amid allegations that
Indonesian-registered fishing vessels were engaging in illegal,
unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing in the Atlantic Ocean.
The ICCAT is a regional fisheries management organization that
aims to eliminate IUU fishing for tuna and tuna-like species in
the Atlantic Ocean.
"We will discuss this problem (the embargo threat) with the
Australian government next month," Rokhmin said.
The two countries have agreed on a joint project to improve
the management of Indonesia's tuna fisheries with a view to
pushing for more sustainable fishing of Indian Ocean tuna.
The project will monitor catches in the waters off Benoa,
Bali, and Muara Baru and Cilacap, Central Java.
Rokhmin said that the government had also made several efforts
to curb IUU fishing , such as boosting supervision and law
enforcement at sea.
In the meantime, Rokhmin said that the country's fish exports
were expected to decrease by six percent this year from 487,166
tons in 2001.
He said that the decrease was due to a number of problems,
including tighter requirements imposed by overseas markets.
In addition, said Rokhmin, importing countries had imposed
very high import tariffs of up to 25 percent for Indonesian fish
products.
He did not elaborate.
The country's fish exports reached some 519,415 tons worth
some US$1.68 billion in 2000, compared with overall exports worth
$1.63 billion in 2001.