JP/7/F01

Fishermen to storm Jakarta, fishing for tax cuts

Agus Maryono The Jakarta Post Pekalongan

In a move to step up pressure on the government to revoke newly decreed fishing taxes, thousands of fishermen from Central Java have planned to storm the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries office in Jakarta on Apr. 10.

The massive march was scheduled for last month, but was postponed until this month as most of the fishermen were still at sea.

They have staged a number of demonstrations in their local areas, including Tegal and Pekalongan, but their demands were ignored by the local authorities.

They have been protesting the two new taxes, namely the fishing vessel tax (PPP) and the fishing income tax (PHP) which went into effect last November.

The new taxes were introduced under a decree issued by the ministry, which are in addition to the 5 percent levy on sales that fishermen are obliged to pay.

Under the new decree, fishermen must pay the PHP tax which amounts to 2.5 percent of their fishing income every time they return to port. Meanwhile, the PPP tax is collected every year and is calculated by the weight of a fishing vessel. For example, a 30-ton boat is charged a Rp 3 million tax.

The protesters are scheduled to leave on Apr. 9 for Jakarta and begin their march one day later, their leaders said on Monday.

The demonstration will involve those from the regencies of Tegal, Pekalongan, Cilacap, Brebes, Pemalang, Batang, Pati, Jepara and Juwana.

Basari Hambali, head of Pekalongan's Indonesian Fishermen's Association (HNSI), said his office had prepared at least 11 buses to take the protesters to Jakarta.

As of Monday, at least 200 of a total of 700 fishing boats had docked in the Pekalongan port and will not return to sea until they arrive home from their protests in Jakarta.

However, they were waiting for approval by the HNSI central board to depart for Jakarta. The board was reported to be holding talks with Minister Rokhmin Dahuri.

In their planned protest, the fishermen plan to demand that the government at least reduce the PHP tax to 1 percent of their fishing income, and to allow them to pay the PPP tax in installments, if their demand for the total revocation of the new decree goes unheeded.

"If the demand for the reduction of the PHP tax to 1 percent is rejected, we will continue demonstrations," Basari said.

Protesting fishermen last month vowed to meet with President Megawati Soekarnoputri to demand her intervention in revoking the two separate fishing taxes.

It was not clear whether they will go ahead with the plan for talks with Megawati during the Apr. 10 demonstration.