Maritime group to study RI's sea traffic plan

JAKARTA (JP): The International Maritime Organization (IMO) meets in London next week to consider Indonesia's controversial plan to regulate sea traffic in its territory, a senior Indonesian diplomat said.

Indonesia plans to require vessels sailing through its archipelagic waters to use one of three proposed North-South sea lanes, a move strongly opposed by the United States and Australia. The meeting will start on July 14.

The separate sea lanes consist of the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra; the Lombok Straits between Bali and Lombok islands; and the Maluku Sea to Timor and Arafura Sea.

"Our proposal was discussed by the Maritime Safety Committee of IMO last December, and this will continue on July 14," Hasyim Djalal, ambassador-at-large for the law of the sea and maritime affairs, told The Jakarta Post recently.

Under the plan, Indonesia may require submarines, warships, tankers, nuclear power ships and vessels carrying dangerous and toxic materials to use the designated sea lanes.

Hasyim said the plan would not affect regular passage outside of the sea lanes, including for commercial vessels.

However, when warships, aircraft carriers and submarines pass outside of the designated lanes, they would have to sail on the surface, secure their weapons and deactivate radars. In addition, they would be prohibited from military exercises or aircraft takeoffs from their decks.

Hasyim hoped the adoption of the plan would ensure legal order in Indonesia's waters to enable the country to concentrate on its effective development.

"This is very important for our national security and environment," he said.

U.S. diplomats argue the plan would limit movement of its warships through the region.

Australia said Indonesia's requirement would impose unacceptable limits on free passage for its ships and would increase shipping costs.

"These two countries are very concerned, and therefore we undertook consultations with them," said Hasyim, who will lead the Indonesian delegation in the negotiations.

Hasyim denied Indonesia wanted to obstruct passage outside the sea lanes, as some countries feared.

"All we have to do is to allocate these sea lanes and then recommend certain vessels should pass through them," he said.

Negotiations had brought much progress, he added.

"We have reached some understanding, but of course we have not agreed on everything," he said.

After a 37-year struggle, Indonesia gained international recognition as an archipelagic state with the United Nations Law of the Sea Convention 1982.

The House of Representatives passed the bill on Indonesian Maritime Waters in July last year, and President Soeharto signed it into law in August.

Indonesia's waters span 6.5 million square kilometers and make up about three-quarters of its total territory.

"The convention grants us the right to enact laws and legislations for the safety of navigation in our sea lanes," said Hasyim.

In several rounds of negotiations with Indonesia, both the U.S. and Australia demanded the addition of another lane, the East-West Lane, which in the past had been used for international navigations. It starts from the Arafura Sea through Java Sea, and runs towards the Malacca Straits and South China Sea.

"The East-West issue is the most difficult aspect of the negotiation because we are not ready for this," Hasyim said.

Hasyim hoped next week's meeting, organized by IMO's subcommittee on Safety of Navigation, would support Indonesia's plan.

But he acknowledged that the U.S. and Australia may continue their opposition.

"They and the other maritime powers can block our efforts," he said. (06)