Antara News, Friday, April 23, 2010 20:53 WIB
Pontianak (ANTARA News) - Ten boats manned by Vietnamese fishermen have been seized for illegally fishing in Indonesia`s Exclusive Economic Zone in Natuna waters.
The head of the port of control and monitoring of fishery and marine resources (P2SDKP) here, Bambang Nugroho, said here on Friday nine of the boats and their skippers were now held at the port while one had been sent home carrying around 61 crew of all the boats.
Bambang said that only the skippers would be legally processed because based upon experience the crew could not be legally processed. "They will maximally be charged with violating the immigration law and deported," he said.
Bambang said the Vietnamese fishermen did not defy and therefore the process of the seizure went smoothly. "We have not determined the amount of their catch," he said.
Hiu Macan 001 on Sunday (April 11) seized 10 foreign boats belonging to Vietnamese fishermen illegally fishing in Natuna waters.
He said nine of the boats were now being legally processed while the catch as the evidence weighing around 21 tons evidence had been destroyed because they contained formaldehyde.
Bambang said Natuna, Arafura and norther part of North Sulawesi waters are foreign fishermen`s favorite places for illegal fishing.
Bambang appealed to the people not to buy the catch of Thai or Vietnamese fishermen not only because it is poached from Indonesia and also contains formaldehyde.
According to the FAO, Thailand and Vietnam are the world`s biggest fish producers although they have only tiny waters.
The waters in West Kalimantan which are part of Zone III along with Natuna, Karimata and South China Sea are rich with potential catch reaching one million ton a year.
The fish species in the waters include mackerel, tuna and squid.
In 2007 the ministry of fisheries and marine resources deployed 21 patrol boats and was able to seize 185 foreign boats and in 2008 using 23 patrol boats seized 242 and in 2009 seized 180 foreign boats illegally fishing in the country`s waters.
The potential loss saved from 180 boats was worth around Rp720 billion based upon an assumption of one motor boat incurring a loss of Rp4 billion a year.
