Indonesian 'sea gypsy' fights for fishing rights

Indonesian 'sea gypsy' fights for fishing rights

SYDNEY (Reuter): An Indonesian "sea gypsy" detained for the past five months for illegally fishing in Australian waters plans to use an Aboriginal "native title" argument to defend his right to fish off Australia.

Captain Nasir and his four crew, nomadic Bajau or "sea gypsies" from the island of Roti near Timor, argue that their ancestors have plied the waters off northern Australia for thousands of years.

They say this ancestral right exempts them from Australian fishery laws, which have seen hundreds of Asian fishing boats burned by Australian customs and their crews deported for illegally fishing in Australian waters.

Nasir and his crew will launch their unique test case when they appear in court in the port of Broome on Australia's northwest coast on Oct. 16.

"This is the first 'native title' case I have heard of in the 16 years I have been on the job," said Tom Morris, the department of fisheries supervisor for northwest Australia.

Nasir's lawyer Wally Goodlet told Reuters yesterday that just as Aborigines had "native title" or indigenous rights to land because their ancestors inhabited Australia before white settlement in 1788, the same applied to the Bajau people.

"Nineteenth century European navigators independently report in their logs these people fishing these waters," Goodlet said.

"They are not claiming ownership, only the right to fish the waters. It is like having right of way on a piece of land. If you have had that right for time in memorial, then the law would recognize that."

Each year Australia's navy catches scores of Asian boats illegally fishing off the northwest coast. Many are motorized, with modern navigation and some boast large refrigerators. About 100 Asian fishing boats, from Indonesia and Thailand, have been detained this year.

But Nasir's boat, the Karya Abadi, is a traditional Bajau sailing craft. The canoe-shaped 10-meter (30-foot) wooden vessel is powered by a lone triangular sail. Its low freeboard limits its fish catch and the absence of a refrigerator means fish have to be smoked to be preserved for the home voyage.

Nasir and his crew cook on an open fire on board and navigation is by compass and the stars, aided by a homemade depth sounder -- a piece of lead tied to a fishing line.

Under a 1974 memorandum of understanding between Indonesia and Australia, traditional Indonesian fishermen are allowed to fish in a special area which overlaps both countries territorial waters near Ashmore Reef. But they are only allowed to use traditional fishing methods, which exclude motorized vessels.

"They sail down from Roti island to a series of reefs for one month to six weeks, collecting trocha shells, sea cucumbers and fishing. It's a real family affair, with fathers taking sons and brothers," Morris said.

When Nasir, 40, was caught by the Australian navy, he argued that, by his seamanship, he was not in Australian waters. He has fished these waters for 23 years.

But the navy's satellite navigation equipment put him 10.75 nautical miles inside Australian territorial waters, outside the special traditional fishing area of the Timor Sea.

On May 18, Nasir and his crew were towed into Broome and taken to a detention center. But the Bajau fishermen opted to live on board their boat, moored in a tidal creek and there they have stayed for the past five months awaiting their fate.

Goodlet said Nasir was not only defending his right to fish in Australian waters, but was also trying to save his boat from being destroyed by Australian customs. Nasir bought his boat for about US$140 earlier this year and has not yet paid for it.

"If he loses, it will certainly be burned. He will be in debt for the rest of his life," said Goodlet.