President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo ensures that Indonesia’s sovereignty at the North Natuna Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) will be maintained through law enforcement.
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President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo ensures that Indonesia’s sovereignty at the North Natuna Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) will be maintained through law enforcement. Meanwhile, Chinese boats are beginning to get out of Indonesia’s EEZ.
NATUNA, KOMPAS — President Joko Widodo reaffirmed on Wednesday (8/1/2020) that Indonesia’s sovereignty in its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in North Natuna Sea would be maintained through firm law enforcement. The government will not tolerate foreign boats stealing fish in Indonesia’s EEZ.
Therefore, the government will deploy the Navy and the Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla) to North Natuna to ensure law enforcement. Illegal foreign fishing boats will be driven away or seized.
The President made the statement in the wake of the presence of foreign boats illegally fishing in Indonesia’s EEZ. Chinese fishing boats escorted by the country’s coast guards were seen stealing fish in North Natuna Sea, an Indonesian EEZ.
Two Chinese boats were seen using trawl nets to fish in the area. In line with Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministerial Regulation No. 2/2015, trawl nets are banned in Indonesia (Kompas, 6/1/2020).
“I want to reiterate that I come here to ensure law enforcement on our sovereignty over our marine resources in our exclusive economic zone,” the President reaffirmed in a visit to an integrated naval base in Lampa Strait, Natuna regency, Riau Islands, on Wednesday.
Previously, after a meeting with Natuna fishermen at the Natuna integrated marine resources and fisheries center (SKPT), the President visited two naval ships, namely KRI Usman Harun 359 and KRI Karel Satsuit Tubun 356, at Lampa Strait Port.
The President continued that foreign boats were allowed to pass through Indonesia’s EEZ. However, they are not allowed to take marine resources within the zone, as all of them belong to Indonesia.
“All ships are free to pass through our EEZ. However, if they steal our fish, we can seize them or drive them out,” Jokowi said.
According to him, the Natuna waters are Indonesian territory de jure and de facto. He also reiterated the difference between EEZ (sovereign rights) and territorial waters (sovereignty).
Sovereignty entails full authority over a territory, including on territorial waters up to 12 nautical miles (22 kilometers) from the coastline. In an EEZ, which covers waters up to 200 miles from the coastline, a country only has sovereign rights, namely the right to manage and use.
The President said that, according to reports from Indonesian Military commander Air Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto, no foreign boats entered Indonesia’s sovereign territory in North Natuna. What happened was foreign boats entered Indonesia’s EEZ, where the country holds sovereign rights.
Chinese boats moving away
Up to one day prior to President Jokowi’s visit to Natuna, monitoring by the military’s Joint Defense Area Command (Kogabwilhan) I showed that four Chinese coast guard ships and one Chinese fishing monitoring vessel were guarding 30 boats with Chinese flags in North Natuna Sea, around 130 nautical miles (240 kilometers) from Ranai, Natuna regency. The location is within Indonesia’s EEZ.
The information was gathered from data from Bakamla’s Fusion Center and field monitoring by Bakamla and the Navy’s maritime patrol aircrafts.
However, on Wednesday, the Bakamla said that the Chinese fishing boats and coast guards had begun to move out of Indonesia’s EEZ. The information was gathered from data from Bakamla’s Fusion Center and field monitoring by Bakamla and the Navy’s maritime patrol aircrafts.
“The fishing boats are currently sailing northward, including the Chinese coast guard ships. Possibly, they are not within our EEZ anymore,” Bakamla training and operation deputy Rear Adm. TSNB Hutabarat said on board Bakamla’s ship KN Tanjung Datu 301, who was docking at Lampa Strait Port.
Regarding the plan to involve fishermen from Java’s northern coast on Natuna waters, Hutabarat said Bakamla would be ready to monitor them. He said that he hoped the plan would boost Indonesia’s activity and presence in its EEZ. “Through the presence of our fishing boats, we hope that our maritime situation will be strengthened and our economy will grow,” he said.
Facilitated
Natuna Deputy Regent Ngesti Yuni Suprapti said she hoped President Jokowi’s visit in Natuna would cause Chinese and Vietnam boats to leave the North Natuna Sea immediately. The presence of foreign fishing boats and coast guards in the region has made local fishermen worried about going out to sea without escorts.
Ngesti said the government should facilitate Natuna fishermen and empower them to fill the vacuum in the EEZ. Currently, local fishermen are powerless against the fierce waves during the northern monsoon. This condition is used by foreign boats to steal fish between November and January.
This provides an opportunity for foreign boats to reap the wealth of marine resources in North Natuna.
Currently, it is estimated that there are 20,000 fishermen in Natuna. Of this amount, Ngesti said, only 0.5 percent had the means to venture out to sea as far as the EEZ. This provides an opportunity for foreign boats to reap the wealth of marine resources in North Natuna.
Data from the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry shows that potential fishery resources in Indonesian Fishery Management Region 711, comprising Karimata Strait, Natuna Sea and South China Sea, reaches 767,126 tons. The region also has East Natuna Block, which has Indonesia’s largest oil and gas reserves.
In Jakarta, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said the program to send Javanese fishermen to Natuna had been done in several phases. President Jokowi has requested the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry to use the Natuna waters as a basis for Indonesia’s fish export
Meanwhile, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Edhy Prabowo said the ministry would improve the SKPT facility in Natuna. Edhy said he hoped the Natuna SKPT would boost economic growth in the region. Optimal economic development in the region would strengthen Indonesia’s border security and maritime sovereignty. (NDU/LAS/SPW/WAK/NTA)