JP/7/F01

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.