Latest News on Indonesian Citizen Held Hostage by Somali Pirates

Exploring the ocean is a dream for some people. However, for Fiki Mutakim, a young Indonesian sailor, the sea represents waves of hope and unrelenting threats colliding mercilessly.

At 24 years old, Fiki had just embarked on his grand dream: sailing across vast oceans. His first journey into international waters should have been the beginning of a story of discovery and bringing home hope.

But on 21 April, he, along with three other Indonesians and over a dozen foreign crew members, was forcibly pulled into a dark abyss, held hostage by an armed group of pirates.

From the latest circulating video, the hostages are crammed into a small cabin on the ship, sitting shoulder to shoulder.

This is not merely a hijacking incident. It is the first tragedy in Fiki’s long journey, which had already soured with the bitter pill of being scammed by a fake job offer.

In the Land of a Thousand Islands, far from the horizon that now confines him, a family waits with bated breath.

They are not just waiting for a son’s return, but clutching tightly to the promise he left behind. A simple promise: to return, marry his beloved, and bring happiness to his mother and family.

A senior sailor said that the sea never truly stops the steps of seafarers; it only tests how strongly they endure.

And in Jakarta, a mother believes her son will come home.

‘Ma, pray, so I can return to Indonesia safely.’

On Tuesday, 21 April, at 08:30 WIB, Aat Setiyawati’s phone buzzed. She saw her son’s face, Fiki Mutakim, on the screen.

That day, Aat said, there was no serious conversation across the international distance. As in their nearly year-long exchanges: Fiki always asked about the family’s news.

Fiki also explained his position: he was on a journey from Oman to Somali waters on the tanker Honour 25.

‘I asked, where are you, Dek? Sending to Somalia, Ma.’ He said that. He hadn’t even departed for Somalia yet. He just said, ‘Ma, pray,’ like that, ‘so I can return to Indonesia safely,’ said Aat.

Aat Setiyawati only learned that her son had been taken hostage by Somali pirates after receiving a news link from social media. (Personal document)

Tuesday turned to Friday. Aat grew anxious because she hadn’t heard from Fiki again. Then, she sent a message, hoping for a reply.

‘Where are you that your phone keeps being off? How are you?’

‘On Friday (24/04), I sent a message via WA. Not active. Ah, I thought, maybe no signal. Because if he [receives the message], he usually lets me know again,’ she said.

But the awaited response never came.

Aat only found out her son was being held by Somali pirates after some of Fiki’s friends sent her a news link on the same day.

Aat’s body went limp instantly. The world felt dark. ‘Shocked, surprised,’ she said.

Through social media, Aat obtained a phone number to communicate with the family of Ashari Samadikun in South Sulawesi. Ashari is the captain of the tanker Honour 25, which is currently being hijacked.

Photo of Ashari Samadikun, Captain of Honour 25, with Fiki Mutakim, who is still a hostage of Somali pirates.

Based on the story from Ashari’s family, Aat said, so far the Honour 25 crew are in good health.

‘I also heard that news, they pray together, they’re given food,’ said Aat.

Fiki Mutakim is Aat Setiyawati’s second child from her first husband, who passed away when her son was still in first grade of primary school. Fiki now has two younger siblings from his stepfather.

‘One is finishing sixth grade primary school about to enter junior high. The other is in second grade primary school,’ said Aat.

For the past year, Fiki has been sending money to his mother, including pocket money for his siblings. Fiki also planned to fund their education up to higher levels ‘so they become proper people.’

‘That’s why he’s taking responsibility for his siblings. That’s why Fiki is my one and only hope,’ said Aat.

Additionally, Aat said, Fiki planned to continue his maritime schooling in Jakarta after returning from sailing.

Fiki even vowed that upon his return to Indonesia, his mother must stop working as a domestic helper. He was determined to cover her living expenses thereafter.

When asked what she misses most about her son right now?

Aat answered briefly, her voice muffled with tears: ‘Everything.’

‘We plan to get married next year’

According to his work contract, Fiki Mutakim should have docked in Indonesia this month. He has been navigating oceans across countries since a year ago, starting from Dumai Port in Riau.

‘We plan [to marry] next year. That’s just our plan, the two of us,’ said Kartika Sari, Fiki’s fiancée.

With this hijacking tragedy, their plans for a new life hang in the balance. But Tika—as Kartika Sari is called—holds strong faith.

‘I hope everything will be fine, Kak Fiki will return here safely and it won’t disrupt our plans,’ she said.

The matter of working as a sailor was once a point of contention between the couple. Initially, Tika was reluctant.

‘From the beginning, I was already worried, because at sea like this, the risks are greater. But because he was enthusiastic and curious about what the sea is like, I finally agreed for him to take maritime school and up to now,’ she said.

However, this hijacking tragedy might draw them back into a heated discussion about Fiki’s dream of becoming a true sailor.

‘Considering risks like this, yes, it becomes a consideration again,’ said Tika, who knows her fiancé as a man who is ‘kind, then caring, doesn’t get angry easily, very patient.’

‘Tough sailors are not forged in calm waves’

One of the family members who last communicated with Fiki Mutakim was his uncle, Wawan Gunawan.

’Uncle