Navy nets 35 ships

SURABAYA: The Navy, which is mounting an anti-crime operation in Indonesian waters, has captured 35 ships, seven of them Chinese, which did not have the necessary documents for entry.

Navy Chief Rear Admiral Arief Koeshariadi said the Chinese vessels were captured this week by Indonesian patrol ships when they illegally entered the waters off the coast of Tual regency in Maluku.

"It is a unique case because the Chinese vessels' crew members were all Chinese nationals who entered Indonesian territory flying an Indonesian flag, but they had no legal documents," Antara news agency quoted him as saying after he inaugurated a Rp 7.2 billion pier project in Semampir, Surabaya yesterday.

Chief of the Eastern Naval Fleet Vice Admiral Bambang Surjanto said that 28 timber ships were also confiscated this week for carrying logs without the necessary documents from Kalimantan to East Java. (rms)