RI, Malaysia police stage joint patrols

BATAM, Riau Islands: Despite regular diplomatic spats between Indonesia and Indonesia, the Riau Islands Police are holding joint patrols with their counterparts from the Malaysian police in the pirate-infested Malacca Strait.

The patrols, which began on Tuesday and will continue for one week, are being participated in by three Riau Islands Police boats and two Selangor state police boats, said Riau Islands Police chief Sr. Comr. Anton Bahrul Alam. Anton also said that the initiative involved 100 police officers from both sides.

The joint patrols were aimed at preventing piracy in the Malacca Strait and illegal fishing by vessels from both countries, said Anton. The joint patrols are taking place only a few months after the eruption of the Ambalat dispute that brought diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Malaysia to a new low. -- JP