No Turning Back

INDONESIA / ILLEGAL FISHING

No Turning Back

Despite official legislation, Indonesia is yet to institute processes to curb illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing

This article is by Martin Hadiwinatha (hadiwinata.ahmad@gmail.com) Head of Law Development and Fisherfolk Advocacy, Indonesia Tradisional Fisherfolk Union (Kesatuan Nelayan Tradisional Indonesia)

“We have far too long turned our back on the seas, the oceans, the straits and the bays. It’s time to restore everything so that Jalesveva Jayamahe, a slogan used by our ancestors, will echo again.

Ir. Jokowi, the President of Indonesia, at his presidential inauguration

The public in Indonesia was surprised by the investigation of the Associated Press into the enslavement of hundreds of foreign nationals in Indonesia. In remote Benjina, in the Maluku Islands, PT Benjina Resources enslaved people who work up to 22 hours per day with no days off, locked up and forced to drink dirty water. The produce from PT Benjina Resources is sent to Thailand, from where it spreads out into international trade via seafood retailers in the US, Asia and Europe. These illegal fish catches are sold to either restaurants or as pet food.

In May 2015, the Indonesian government repatriated 659 workers of PT Pusaka Benjina Resources, comprising 419 Thais, 202 Burmese and 38 Cambodians. Five years before the Benjina case became public, the Supreme Audit Agency on 19 March 2009 published a report on licensing, non-tax revenues, processing and control of fishing for the period 2007–2009. The report reveals violations in industrial relations, including the fact that there are 98 vessels that employ foreign nationals.

In 2014 MV Hai Fa, a freighter vessel of 4,306 GT (gross tonnes) linked up with PT Avona Mina Lestari to transport fish to China. MV Hai Fa transported as much as 800,658 kg of frozen shrimp, valued at 70 bn Indonesian rupiahs (INR). MV Hai Fa also carried 15,000 kg of oceanic whitetail sharks (Carcharhinus longimanus) and hammerhead sharks.

Nonetheless, the captain of MV Hai Fa was prosecuted merely for violation of rules related to trade in prohibited fish species and charged with a fine of 200 mn INR and a six-month imprisonment. MV Hai Fa was a Panamanian-flagged vessel captained by foreign nationals, whose operation in the waters of Indonesia is a violation of law. MV Hai Fa also violated many other rules and regulations (see table below).

Table 1: Violations by MV Hai Fa

There are three modes of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in Indonesia. The first is the illegal use of foreign nationals as crew. The second is manipulation of permits for vessels, including those related to tonnage. The third is violation of provisions for landing and processing of fishery products.

Indonesia comprises 13,466 islands with the total area for fisheries, including the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and the continental shelf, amounting to 6.32 mn sq. km. The land area is 1.91 mn sq. km. Fisheries resources are regulated under Article 33, Para (3) of the constitution, which states: “The earth, water and natural resources contained therein are controlled by the state and used for the greatest prosperity of the people.

It is estimated that there are 5,400 foreign fishing vessels operating illegally in the sea of Indonesia. Each year one to two mn tonnes of fish are stolen, landed and traded illegally. The foreign vessels that fish illegally come from the following six ASEAN countries, namely, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia and Myanmar), and from the following non-ASEAN countries, namely, China, Korea, Taiwan and Panama. Most of the illegal fishing occurs in eighteen locations to the west and thirteen to the east.

In 2011 the Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries identified Indonesia’s annual potential fish catch at 6.5 mn tonnes. However, considering the level of overfishing, this seems to be an underestimate. At present, there are 615,130 vessels with permits to fish in the waters below 12 nautical miles and 3,190 with permits to fish in the EEZ.

In the past, Indonesia suffered from a large imbalance in overall socioeconomic development, including in fisheries. Of the total of 1,375 fishing ports, 68 per cent were in western Indonesia, while 25 per cent were in the central region and only seven per cent in eastern Indonesia.

However, under the new Indonesia fisheries act, fishing industry operations can be conducted in the Republic of Indonesia only by its citizens. Exceptions are allowed for foreign entities engaged in fishing in the EEZ, subject to provisions of Article 62.2 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), 1982. Indonesia-flagged vessels are allowed to go fishing in the sea waters of Indonesia, including in the EEZ, but foreign-flagged vessels can fish in the EEZ provided they have licenses.

Indonesian regulations on foreign investment adopt the negative list system with licences or permission required for foreigners. Under the Presidential Regulation No. 39 of 2014, foreign investment in fisheries in the EEZ is permitted only for those who use fishing vessels of 100 GT or more. There are three principal permits needed to operate in Indonesia’s fisheriesthe fishery business licence for fisheries and aquaculture, the fishing license and the fishery transport business licence.

Foreign-flagged vessels caught for illegal fishing may be subject to severe penalties, including the sinking of the vessel. Indonesian-flagged vessels are required to engage captains and crew of Indonesian nationality. Foreign-flagged vessels that fish in the EEZ should have a minimum of 70 per cent Indonesian citizens as crew.

There are several other policies related to IUU fishing in Indonesia, ranging from the prohibition of transhipment at sea, a moratorium on the termination of licensing of vessels built abroad and a ban on trawling in the waters of Indonesia. Violations can attract administrative sanctions such as warnings, suspension and/or revocation of licences.

According to a new regulation of the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, those who land above 2,000 tonnes are required to process the catch by building a fish processing unit.

Monitoring, control and surveillance (MCS) activities are covered under the Fisheries Act of 2014, by which the Maritime Security Agency has been replaced by the Maritime Security Coordinating Board, which is a multitasking agency that coordinates with thirteen other government agencies for supervision against IUU fishing.

The fishing vessel registration system in Indonesia is divided sectorally between the Ministry of Transportation and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. Vessel measurements are regulated by the Ministry of Transportation, while licensing of fishing vessels comes under the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. However, there are complaints that this division leads to manipulation of weight measurement of vessels to evade tax and levies.

Manipulation of the gross weight of fishing vessels is becoming a major source of corruption in the fisheries sector, which is worsened by the division of authority between the central and local governments in issuing permits. Under Law No. 23 of 2014 on Regional Government, regulation of vessels between 5 and 30 GT falls under the authority of the provincial government. According to the findings of the Corruption Eradication Agency, which audited the tax liabilities of vessel owners, of the 1,836 fishery businesses that obtained licences, 632 do not yet have a tax identity number.

According to data from Kesatuan Nelayan Traditional Indonesia (KNTI), in 2013 there were 615,130 vessels that fish in waters below 12 nautical miles. The 3,190 vessels that fish in the EEZ could easily deplete the fishery resources which ought to be accessed by the locals. The fishery stock resources in the territorial waters tends to be overfished and overexploited. Meanwhile the 3,190 vessels that fish in the EEZ could easily deplete the fishery resources which ought to be accessed by the locals. This problem can be addressed by facilitating the fisherfolks to access the resources so the EEZ will secured by locals fishers.

In our view in Indonesia, MCS activities will work well only with the involvement of fisherfolk, as per the provisions in the National Fisheries Act (Article 67), needs to be implemented properly and strengthened.

Figure 1. Distribution of fishing vessels: 2008-2013

Source: KNTI (2014)

Map: Distribution of Fishing Ports

 Source: KNTI, 2014

Table 2: Distribution of Fishing Vessels and Fish Processing Units

Source: KNTI,2014

Table 3: Results of examinations conducted on vessels
by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries

Source: KNTI, 2014

For more

aolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/ins51065.pdf
Law No. 31 of 2004 on fisheries

faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/ins97600.pdf
Law No. 45 of 2009 and Amendment to Law No. 31 of 2004 on fisheries

bigstory.ap.org/article/b9e0fc7155014ba78e07f1a022d90389/ap-investigation-are-slaves-catching-fish-you-buy
Are slaves catching the fish you buy?