Indonesia to step up safety after ferry disaster

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian government is to step up sea transport safety measures after up to 350 passengers died when a ferry sank, an official said Friday.

Only 35 people have been found alive since the Teratai Prima sank in the Makassar Strait between Sulawesi and Borneo islands early Sunday during a tropical storm.

"We are going to be strict with the port officials and vessel operators who fail to meet our safety requirements," government official Sunaryo told a press conference.

He has sent memos to port officials across Indonesia to check vessels comply with safety standards.

Sunaryo, the Director General of Sea Transportation at the Transportation Ministry, said officials were still trying to ascertain the exact number of passengers who were on the 10-year old vessel.

He acknowledged that "collusion" could occur between port officials, who have the authority to let a vessel leave the port, and operators who carry more passengers that they should.

"We are not going to tolerate those who fail to comply with our regulations. For operators, we could freeze or revoke their licences. For negligent officials, we could fire them," Sunaryo, who goes by one name, said.

He added that the rescue team was still trying to find the victims although the chance of finding survivors was small.

It is expected to take up to six months to investigate the cause of the accident.

"This is a difficult investigation for us because we can't investigate the body of the ferry," National Transportation Safety Committee chairman Tatang Kurniadi told AFP.

The committee will study the weather during the accident, the ferry's condition and the competency of the ship's captain.

Kurniadi said the committee had just 14 people working on the investigation.

Meanwhile, one person was killed and eight survived after an Indonesian cargo vessel sank late Tuesday at Sumatra Bangka-Belitung province, officials said.

Waves of up to five metres hit the vessel as it was shipping food and construction materials from Jakarta's Sunda Kelapa harbour to Pangkalbalam harbour in Bangka Belitung.