Navy fires on Chinese fishing boat

Navy fires on Chinese fishing boat

JAKARTA: A naval ship fired shots on Wednesday at a Chinese boat caught fishing illegally off Papua province, injuring two of its 25 crew members, a Navy officer said.

The trawler was fired on because it resisted attempts to board it and attempted to flee, said the head of the eastern fleet, Rear Adm. I Wayan Argawa.

He said his men "acted according to international legal procedures, starting with warning shots up to shooting at its hull. The boat was fired on because it tried to flee", he said.

The Lau Shin Huan was fired on near the island of Dolak on the south coast of Papua, he said.

The trawler and its crew were taken to the naval base in nearby Merauke.

Argawa said the fishermen were being detained for questioning and their haul of 30 tons of tuna and shrimp had been impounded. No documents were found on board the vessel.

"We took stern action because they did not have any legal documents," he said, adding that the boat was not flying a national flag.

"This shooting reflects the firm stand of the Indonesian Navy in enforcing the law at sea," Argawa said.

The Navy last month sank four vessels from the Philippines in the Sulawesi Sea. The boats reportedly tried to escape after being caught fishing illegally, but the incident prompted a protest from Manila.

The 49 Filipino fishermen were eventually sent home, after the government in Manila complained that excessive force had been used in their arrest. -- Agencies