Territorial sovereignty

Territorial sovereignty

Civilian, as well as military, authorities have made a cacophony of sounds over Indonesia's obligation to issue a diplomatic statement on the illegal entry of five F-18 Hornet jet fighters of the United States Navy into the country's airspace.

The diplomatic statement, which is being discussed, would serve as a protest to Washington because the U.S. jet fighters' maneuver over Bawean island in East Java province was a violation of Indonesia's territorial sovereignty.

Indonesia's territorial sovereignty is a sacred constitutional decree, which cannot be measured by how often a foreign fleet violates it, but by how strong the country can defend it.

At sea, our national sovereignty is torn apart by foreign fishermen who steal our marine resources.

Separatist groups are also beginning to tear up our territorial land. The separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) has claimed the land of Aceh as theirs, while the Free Papua Organization (OPM) is doing the same thing by claiming the land of West Irian (Papua).

Still fresh in our mind is how two tiny islands of ours, Sipadan and Ligitan, had fallen into Malaysian hands.

The gradual violation of our territorial sovereignty is brought about by two major issues -- the country's failure to regard sovereignty as national dignity, and the country's negligence of its navy and air force.

Thus, it is humiliating for Indonesia, as a marine country, to have a weak navy fleet.

-- Media Indonesia, Jakarta