New regulation in works to curb illegal fishing

JAKARTA (JP): The government will apply a new fishing licensing regulation as it moves to curb illegal foreign fishing in Indonesian waters, Minister of Maritime Exploration Sarwono Kusumaatmaja said on Thursday.

He said the licensing procedure was being prepared by a special team in his ministry, with the expectation it would be ready within the next four months.

"Our problem with illegal foreign fishing is largely linked to our weak licensing procedure that is prone to manipulation," Sarwono said on the sidelines of a national meeting of the Association of Indonesian Fishing Companies (Gappindo).

Illegal foreign fishing is estimated to cost the country some US$4 billion in lost revenue every year, while Indonesia earns $2.2 billion from its own fishing sector.

Sarwono said his office would work with other related government institutions, such as the Ministry of Communications, in drafting the regulation.

He said the licensing procedure would also accommodate the trend toward greater regional autonomy and stressed that a tighter control system should follow the implementation of the regulation.

"First we have to fix our licensing procedure and then our control system. A weak control system would just make the new licensing procedure useless," Sarwono said.

He said Indonesia would apply the Monitoring Controlling Surveillance (MCS) system in safeguarding its marine potential.

Although not disclosing the cost of MCS, which is an electronic surveillance network using radios, radars and satellites, Sarwono assured that the technology was becoming more affordable.

"We can make several components locally and it's a standard equipment in most countries, including poor ones," he said.

He said the Indonesian fishing industry also supported the proposal.

Gappindo chairman Sutara Martadisastra said the association welcomed the government's move to tighten the monitoring of foreign fishing vessels operating in Indonesian waters.

He also recommended the government simplify the fishing licensing procedures through the processing of applications by one ministry only.

On the fishing industry's prospects, he said banks were still reluctant to channel their funds to the sector and preferred the property industry.

But he said the industry held great potential as Indonesia was the world's eight largest fish exporter, with exports reaching 4.8 million metric tons in 1998.

"However, Gappindo will take the initiative to cooperate with one or two banks in financing this sector and the procurement of fishing vessels," he said.

Sutara said he would approach Bank Agro, while Sarwono would try to obtain funding from state Bank Mandiri.(bkm/10)