South Korea donates 8 boats to RI

AMBON, Maluku: The government of South Korea has donated eight second-hand boats to Indonesia, following a bilateral agreement signed by both countries recently.

Four boats arrived in Maluku on Nov. 17, and four more would be dispatched from Korea to Maluku immediately, an official said.

Aji Sularso, a secretary to the director of fisheries at the Ministry of Fisheries and Maritime Affairs, said that the speed of the boats was 8 knots to 9 knots on average, and all were less than 10 years old.

Aji said that the boats had been given to the Indonesian government as part of a restructuring program for the fishing fleet owned by the South Korean government.

According to Aji, six boats would be used for fishing while the two others would function as training and maritime research vessels.

The Indonesian government would establish a company to operate the six boats and the fishing revenue they generated would pass to state coffers, he said. -- JP