Local fishermen seek assistance from Kalla

Yemris Fointuna, The Jakarta Post, Kupang | Mon, 03/30/2009 12:58 PM

Vice President Jusuf Kalla has promised to take action in support of traditional Indonesian fishermen who are being caught by Australian maritime authorities in areas deemed "Indonesia's own marine territory".

The pledge was made Sunday during a Golkar Party meeting in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, where Kalla spoke as the chairman of Indonesia's largest party.

The Vice President voiced his sentiments while responding to a complaint from a local fisherman named Hamzah, who attended the gathering.

Hamzah claimed he and other local fisherman were often caught in Indonesian waters in the Timor Sea by Australian sea patrols.

"We were caught in Indonesia's sea, not Australia's, nor that of Pasir Island," he said, referring to an island rich with sea cucumbers and shrimps often mistakenly labeled Indonesian territory by many traditional fishermen.

According to a recent maritime boundary agreement signed between Indonesia and Australia, Pasir Island is an Australian territory.

Lens Haning, the regent of Rote Ndao in Kupang, confirmed that the areas in which local traditional fishermen were often being caught by patrolling Australian vessels was in fact Indonesian territory.

"If there are other *local* fishermen being caught in Indonesia's own marine zones, please contact me. I will take action against it," Kalla told the gathering.

During the past five years, as many as 1,000 local Indonesian fishermen have been caught by Australian sea patrols in the Timor Sea.

When fishermen are caught, their vessels are destroyed and they are usually detained for around one to three months before being deported back to Indonesia.

Indonesia and Australia recently agreed to conduct joint sea patrols around border areas to tackle illegal poaching. The two countries, however, have not yet reached an agreement on "traditional fishing", which is widely practiced in Indonesia but not recognized in Australia.

Both countries are scheduled to discuss this issue specifically at a meeting in Surabaya, East Java, in May.

Tanjung Perak police foil fertilizer smuggling attempt

Surabya, East Java (ANTARA News) - Police at Surabaya`s Tanjung Perak Port on Tuesday foiled an attempt to smuggle 4,000 tons of fertilizer worth Rp25 billion to Vietnam.

A port police spokesman, Adjunct Senior Commissioner Gagas Nugraha, said the MV Hoang Phuang Star with the fertilizer in its hold was nabbed when the ship was still berthed at Tanjung Perak`s Zamrud pier.

"At first, we were suspicious about the ship, and in an investigation we found 1,863 tons of fertilizer without legal documents inside the ship," Nugraha said.

He said in a follow-up investigation , the police found a document of PT Prima Mulya Abadi to export 4,000 tons of fertilizer worth Rp25 billion to Vietnam.

But in reality, the owner of the fertilizer was not PT Prima Mulya Abadi but PT Multimas Chemindo which obtained the fertilizer from PT Sentana Adidaya Pratama which had imported the commodity from Canada.

The police afterward named Suanto, director of PT Multimas Chmindo; Jhoni Eko Saputro, director of PT Prima Mulyo Abadai; and Benny Juansyah, director of PT Sentana Adidaya, as suspects.

Besides holding the suspects, the police also nabbed the Vietnamese-flagged ship and seized 4,000 tons of KCL fertilizer along with several documents.

Coral Reef Development Not Maximal

Monday, 30 March, 2009 | 15:59 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The government is considered to have not maximally developed the coral reef triangle initiative region.

Head of the Research Agency at the Maritime and Fisheries Department, Gellwynn Jusuf, said that government only develops the potential of fisheries in this region.

“While actually there is also potential for marine tourism,” said Gellwynn yesterday (29/3).

The coral triangle initiative region includes Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea and Salomon islands, and amounts to 75,000 square kilometers in total.

In Indonesia alone, it amounts to 51,000 square kilometers, or 65 percent of the total triangle area.

“With this size, there is potential for marine tourism. Wakatobi, Raja Ampat, and Bunaken could be developed,” said Gellwynn.

He mentioned that the triangle at the present can create a profit of US$2.3 billion per year.

Mostly, this comes from fish sales to China and Japan (US$800 million).

Gellwynn also suggested the government to build greater awareness about coral reef preservation.

“Through the Coral Triangle Initiative Summit in Maluku in May this year, we plan to discuss about having national activities to save the coral,” he said.

Meanwhile, director of the Indonesian environment forum (Walhi), Berry Nahdian Forqan, said that fishermen should be involved in any activities to save coral reefs.

Berry believes that traditional fishermen --when they are given opportunities-- are capable to protect certain region. “Sea is a place for them to survive,” he said. Fishermen can detect and report the damage earlier.

Regarding marine tourism, Berry emphasized integration.

“When one region turns into a tourism area but other areas are still waste dumps, the coral will still be destructed,” he said.

REH ATEMALEM SUSANTI

RPT-FEATURE-Shark fin out of vogue among young Asians

Forexpros.com

By Ralph Jennings and Cheong Kah Shin, 2009-03-30 12:03:26 GMT (Reuters)

TAIPEI/SINGAPORE, March 30 (Reuters) - Singaporean groom Han Songguang took his campaign to stop consumption of one of Asia's top delicacies to a new level when he placed postcards of a dead shark on each guest's seat at his own wedding banquet.

Instead of shark's fin soup, a must at many ethnic Chinese wedding banquets, Han offered his guests lobster soup.

"If we can do our part to save 'X' number of sharks ... why not?" said Han, a geography teacher, who married a diving enthusiast in December.

Wildlife conservationists, who have long railed against the popularity of shark fin soup, are finally seeing signs that consumption is dropping as young Asians become aware of the environmental impact of this much prized dish.

Added to that is the global financial crisis, which is causing Asians to tighten their belts and either cut down on visits to restaurants or order more frugally from menus.

A symbol of wealth and status in Chinese culture, shark fin soup has long been an essential part of banquet celebrations for weddings and to welcome in the Lunar New Year.

Until recently, only the rich could afford the soup. But demand has soared in recent years, hand-in-hand with rising affluence in East Asia. The quantity of shark fins demanded, around 800,000 metric tonnes a year, has caused a sharp decline in shark numbers. About 20 percent of all shark species are now endangered.

Wildlife conservationists also decry the killing of sharks through "finning", whereby the fins are cut off and the live shark is tossed back into the sea. Unable to swim properly, the shark suffocates or is killed by predators.

"Today we have incredible access to information. It has become much harder to say 'I didn't know'," said Glenn Sant, marine programme leader of the British wildlife group TRAFFIC.

He urged young Asians to take a stand and say: "'It shouldn't be an insult not to put shark fin on our wedding menu'".

Despite efforts to ban "finning", environmentalists say it is still carried out across the region as fishermen want the valuable fin but don't want to store the rest of the shark as its flesh fetches low prices at fish markets.

CONSERVATION

As young Asians such as Han take a stand against shark fin soup, environmentalists hope for a long-term drop in consumption. Still there is a robust market of older consumers who demand the soup at auspicious events.

"Students and people in their 20s wouldn't go to a shark eatery, and $15 for a dish is no cheap price," said Joyce Wu, programme officer with TRAFFIC.

Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand and China, including Hong Kong, are all major shark fin consumers, according to a TRAFFIC report. Trade in shark products was worth $310 million in 2005, with fins 40 percent of the total, the report says.

Those numbers are coming down as younger consumers eschew the delicacy of their parents.

Worldwide shark consumption dropped from a peak of 897,000 metric tonnes in 2003 to 758,000 in 2006, according to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organisation. Fins make up an increasingly small percentage of the total, TRAFFIC says.

Indonesia's overall 2006 haul of 98,250 metric tonnes compares to a 2003 peak of 117,559 metric tonnes, while Taiwan's 40,000 to 45,000 metric tonnes of shark caught per year is down from around 70,000 annually in the early 1990s.

Hong Kong shark fin hauls have held steady at about 10,000 metric tonnes per year since 2004, the region's government says.

"They live a long time. They have a low reproductive rate. In in other words they produce just a few young every year or every few years," said Yvonne Sadovy, a biology professor at the University of Hong Kong. "So you just can't take a lot."

CHANGING TASTES

Tastes have changed along with awareness for young Asians.

Shang-kuan Liang-chi, a National Taiwan University student who has tried the crunchy jelly-like dish twice at formal events, prefers other food and avoids a shark fin restaurant near campus. "University students never go in there," he said.

Even chefs are hoping to turn the tide. At Singapore's Annual Chefs' Association dinner, shark fin traditionally served at the occasion was taken off the menu.

"It is much harder to stop serving shark's fin in our restaurants as the consumers still demand it. However, in our personal capacity, we can make a stand," said Otto Weibel, a food manager at one of Singapore's top hotels.

Global entertainment giant Disney bowed to pressure from animal rights activists and took the delicacy off its menu when it opened Hong Kong Disneyland in 2005.

Some Asian fishery authorities have banned "finning" and monitor boats for illegal catches of endangered species.

"We care a lot about the problems that environmental groups have raised," said Chen Tain-shou, Taiwan Fisheries Agency deputy director-general.

Authorities in south China recently rescued a nurse shark from a tank after learning that it was to be slaughtered and its fins turned into soup for a 70-person banquet.

Shark fin sellers say their sales have also been tested by the economy. With Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong in recession, the restaurant business is flagging. Older consumers would buy more in better times, they say.

"If people are eating it, it's a major event," said Shen Lee-ching, a Taipei vendor of 30 years who sells dried fins by the bag for about $90 apiece. Some bags of dried, chopped fin have sat for years on her shelves.

In south China's hub city Guangzhou, the 1,200 dried seafood stores have seen shark fin prices fall by about 40 percent since the financial crisis began, said Wu Huihan, an official from the city's dried seafood association.

"People are keeping their money to spend on necessities, things that fill their stomach," said Singapore fin seller Jeff Poon.

(Additional reporting by James Pomfret in Hong Kong; editing by Doug Young and Megan Goldin)

Overfishing threatens preservation of RI`s natural fish resources

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Various fishery management regions were considered over crowded, and overfishing could threaten fish resource preservation in Indonesia, an official of the marine and fisheries ministry, said.

"Clearly, it`s a big challenge for Indonesia to meet the commitment to a responsible fishery management," Soen`an Hadi Poernomo, head of the ministry`s statical data and information center, said here on Sunday.

Java Sea, Arafura Sea, Karimata Strait and Sulawesi Sea were over crowded, he said.

by-catch fishery must be controlled in an effort to preserve fish, he said. The number of fishing boats must be in status quo, and even it should be decreased, he said.

He said fishing schedule and equipment must be regulated tightly.

"All should be supported by researches which study fish stocks or condition," he said.

The Indonesian government had made some efforts to preserve fish through various instruments such as Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries (CCRF), Port State Measure, Global Record of Vessels, and fish trade regulation, he explained.

Regional cooperation in ocean fish management was also needed to preserve fish stocks, Hadi Poernomo said.

The 28th session of FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization)`s Committee on Fisheries, COFI was held in Rome, Italy, on March 2-6, 2009, to discuss among other things the importance of small-scale fisheries, the role that women play within these fisheries, illegal, unregulated and unreported fisheries (IUU), climate change and management of deep sea fisheries in the high seas.

He said Indonesia was represented by Aji Sularso, the marine and fishery ministry`s director general of marine resource supervision and control, in the Rome meeting.

In the FAO COFI meeting, many participants spoke in favor of a new COFI process to develop guidelines on by-catch management and discard reduction, he said.

Indonesia proposes 500 more boats to fish for tuna

Ika Krismantari, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali | Mon, 03/30/2009 12:59 PM

Indonesia proposes to expand its tuna fishing fleet by 500 vessels at the 13th meeting of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) in Bali this week.

The Fishery Ministry's director general for ocean fisheries Ali Supardan told The Jakarta Post on Sunday that in a bid to increase the country's tuna production, Indonesia would propose that 500 more vessels be added to its existing fleet of 874 vessels during the 13th Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) being held in Bali this week, starting on Monday.

With more vessels registered with the IOTC, Indonesia would get the chance to significantly expand its tuna fishing areas. Vessels registered with the IOTC are permitted to fish outside of their national territorial fishing waters, so long as they remain within the Indian Ocean region covered by the IOTC regulatory framework.

Director of fisheries sources Nilanto Prabowo told The Jakarta Post that Indonesia was expected to increase its tuna production by 20 percent this year, should the proposal to amend the quota under the IOTC regulations be approved.

According to data from the Central Statistic Agency (BPS), Indonesia produced 125,933 tons of tuna in 2008, a slight increase from 121, 316 tons in 2007. However the proposed substantial expansion in the size of the tuna fishing fleet would have a major impact on the tonnage of tuna landed, although it might take some time to optimize the resulting catch based on the requested quota.

Nilanto said that the proposed increase in the number of tuna fishing vessels to be deployed under the requested amended IOTC quota would have to be phased in step by step as this would require time and substantial investment.

"We will propose the plan during the meeting. About the time frame for the implementation, we will add the number of registered ships gradually," he said, without elaborating.

The proposal is part of an Indonesian strategic plan to have a greater say among tuna producers in the commission and to play a greater role in the tuna fishing industry.

Nilanto said that Indonesia was not alone in proposing an additional quota. The commission was still in the process of determining the number of boats that could be allowed to fish for tuna in the Indian Ocean region in order to maintain a balance between the development of the tuna industry and sustaining the size of tuna reserves.

"Other countries only propose between 25 and 50 additional vessels," Nilanto said, adding that Indonesia's hefty request was reasonable because the country was considered to be among the biggest maritime countries in the world, with its fishing industry expected to show major growth in the coming years.

Data from the Fishery Ministry shows the country's fishery output reached 8.71 million tons last year, up from 8.24 million tons in 2007.

It exported 895,000 tons of fish in 2008, a 4 percent increase from the 854,329 tons it exported in 2007.

Indonesia joined the IOTC as a full member in 2007, after previously serving as a cooperating noncontributing party.

The IOTC is an inter-governmental organization that manages tuna and tuna-like species in the Indian Ocean and adjacent seas with the main objective of promoting both cooperation among its members and sustainability of tuna resources.

Indonesia is the 27th member of the IOTC.

According to the commission, the region produces more than 1 million tons of tuna annually worth between US$3 billion and $5 billion.

Related Article:

RI exports tuna worths US$337.89 million

Chinese general warns of more territorial disputes

The Jakarta Post, The Associated Press | Mon, 03/30/2009 2:13 PM

The global financial crisis is increasing competition for marine resources and could aggravate territorial disputes in the South China Sea, a Chinese general said Monday.

Along with rich fishing grounds, the South China Sea is believed to have large oil and natural gas reserves. The disputed island groups also straddle busy sea lanes that are a crucial to China's economy.

China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines have overlapping claims to all or parts of South China Sea island groups and the waters that surround them.

Air force Lt. Gen. Liu Chengjun called for stepped-up dialogue among the claimants to keep disputes from spinning out of control. Territorial conflicts in the South China Sea have occasionally broken out into armed confrontation, although the countries have more recently sought to resolve differences peacefully.

"The economic crisis is putting pressure on regional stability and could increase territorial disputes," Liu said. "Faced with this possibility, we need to increase dialogue and cooperation."

Liu was speaking at the opening ceremony of a weeklong forum in Beijing featuring top military brass from China and members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Several members of the association have laid claim to island groups that Beijing disputes.

In recent weeks, Beijing has issued a flurry of diplomatic protests over such disputes and dispatched a converted navy ship to reassert its claims.

The global economic crisis has put millions out of work in China and across east Asia, worsening financial concerns in countries already struggling with vast numbers of poor and threatening large scale social unrest.

Liu said economic desperation was among the factors increasing competition for marine resources - and the potential for clashes. Threats ranging from piracy and transnational crime to the effects of climate change also increased the need for regional cooperation, he said.

The Beijing conference, which includes a visit to an armored division outside the Chinese capital, underscores recent efforts by the traditionally secretive Chinese armed forces to raise their international profile through joint exercises, port calls and participation in United Nations peacekeeping missions.

Officials: Economic Growth May Drop To 3% as Exports Tumble

The Jakarta Globe, Dion Bisara & Bloomberg, March 27, 2009

The national economy may only grow by 3 percent this year because of problems caused by rapidly shrinking exports, which are expected to slump to record lows this year, two senior officials said on Friday.

The comments are the lowest predictions so far about growth this year and provide yet another contrast to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s rosier hopes early in the month, when he projected the economy could grow by between 4.5 and 5 percent.

Speaking in a morning press conference, Trade Minister Mari Pangestu said that the economy might expand by as little as 3 percent this year, as exports slumped and commodity prices plunged from record levels. The value of overseas shipments may shrink between 15 percent and 20 percent in 2009, she said.

Her comments were later echoed by Miranda Goeltom, a senior deputy governor at Bank Indonesia, the central bank. She said BI might revise its growth prediction to between 3 percent and 4 percent this year, from an earlier BI projection of 4 percent to 4.5 percent growth in 2009.

“The growth decline was due to falling exports and a lack of foreign-exchange liquidity weighing on investment,” she said.

Anwar Supriyadi, director general of customs, said that by March 20, data from ports showed that quarterly export volumes and values had dropped by 30 percent and 38 percent, respectively. “They will continue to fall as the economic slump continues,” he said.

Exports fell between November and January as foreign demand slowed. The International Monetary Fund has said that the global economy would contract by 0.5 percent to 1 percent this year.

This is a downward revision of 1 percent to 1.5 percent from the IMF’s January World Economic Outlook, reflecting just how rapid and severe the global recession has become.

But Goeltom said that the stimulus package could act as a buffer, preventing growth from slowing further.

“Whether growth is near 3 percent or not, we’ll have to wait until the stimulus package kicks in,” she said. “But we’re still one of the only countries in the region that’s likely to post positive growth.”

The government hopes that the disbursement in April of Rp 12.2 trillion ($1.06 billion) in infrastructure funding — part of the Rp 73.3 trillion fiscal stimulus package — will create jobs and stimulate household spending, which accounts for about 65 percent of national growth.

Fauzi Calls Inspections for All 26 Dams in The Capital

The Jakarta Globe, Arientha Primanita, March 28, 2009

Situ Gintung dam burst its banks near Jakarta, sending waves of muddy water laden with debris crashing into a suburb of the Indonesian capital. (BBC)

The governor of Jakarta said on Friday that following the Situ Gintung disaster he had ordered an inspection of all dams in Jakarta.

“I have ordered the Public Works Agency to check and recheck the dams and all flood mitigation facilities and infrastructure in Jakarta,” Fauzi Bowo said.

“The incident in Situ Gintung was probably due to a lack of routine inspections,” he said.

Fauzi said that he sent his condolences to families of victims and that he regretted the disaster in the Cirendeu area of Tangerang, west of Jakarta.

He said the capital had set up shelters at Muhammadiyah University Jakarta and Ahmad Dahlan University in Ciputat, Banten Province, to accommodate people whose houses had been swept away or flooded by the burst dam.

Public health worker Effendy Anas said that in addition to providing medical aid the city sent six ambulances to help evacuate victims to Fatmawati Hospital in South Jakarta.

Budi Widiantoro, head of Jakarta’s Public Works Agency, said he had received the new instructions to check embankments in Jakarta and would take preventive steps if any weaknesses in structural integrity were found.

Budi said that while the Situ Gintung dam is in Banten Province, on the outskirts of Jakarta, it holds special significance for Indonesia’s largest city.

“It has the potential to hold back water to keep Jakarta from flooding,” he said, “but it can cause floods in Jakarta if it is overrun, as is happening now.”

He said the dam is directly linked to the Pesanggrahan River that runs through the Cirendeu area on its way to Jakarta areas like Tanah Kusir, Ulujami and Cipulir.

Fahrurozi, head of the water resources division of the Public Works Agency, said that embankment berms in Jakarta were in relatively in good condition. Of 26 dams in Jakarta, he said, six had completed berms, including Situ Babakan, Mangga Bolong and Situ Rawa Dongkel.

Fahrurozi said that at each dam there are officials who monitor water levels and infrastructural integrity.

“If they find something is wrong, they should report it to the agency as soon as possible to prevent breaches from happening,” Fahrurozi said.

Related Articles:

‘Where’s My Mom? My Dad? My Brother?’

Govt urged to install early warning systems at Jakarta lakes

President instructs reconstruction of Situ Gintung dam

Cracks in Collapsed Dam Were Apparent A Year Ago

Thai Police Misreport Finding U.K. Tourist’s Remains in Sea

Bloomberg, Suttinee Yuvejwattana and Daniel Ten Kate

March 27 (Bloomberg) -- Thai police said they received a false report that the body of a U.K. tourist murdered with a hammer three days ago was found in the Andaman Sea near an island where he and his wife had stopped during a boating trip.

“We haven’t found the body yet,” Virat Onsong, a district police chief in Satun province, which borders Malaysia about 970 kilometers (603 miles) south of Bangkok, said by telephone today. Hundreds of police, navy and fishing boats are still searching for the remains of Malcolm Robertson, he said.

Earlier today Police Colonel Woradee Karawanan said the remains of Richardson, 64, were found near Koh Dong, an island in Satun province, where the couple had stopped on a trip through Southeast Asia. The report turned out to be incorrect, he said later.

The murder, which occurred as Robertson’s wife Linda was tied up, has attracted attention from the U.K. press. Linda Robertson survived the attack by the three Myanmar workers, who were caught by police and confessed shortly after they fled the couple’s boat in a dinghy with computers and mobile phones.

The three attackers, who were in search of food at the time, were charged with burglary today, Virat said. They can’t be charged with murder unless a body is found, he added.

“It was such a bizarre situation because it was like the three boys were having a picnic,” Linda Robertson told the British Broadcasting Corp. in a video posted on its Web site.

The three suspects in the case were “water jumpers” who quit their jobs on a fishing boat by jumping into the sea and fleeing to the island, Woradee said. They were in search of food when they approached the couple’s yacht, he added.

“They are not pirates, they were starving,” Woradee said.

To contact the reporters on this story: Suttinee Yuvejwattana in Bangkok at suttinee1@bloomberg.net, Daniel Ten Kate in Bangkok at dtenkate@bloomberg.net

Related Article:

Bloodshed on Mr Bean: lifetime trip turned to terror

Almost there

The Jakarta Post | Wed, 03/25/2009 11:32 AM

Workers install components of the approach bridge Monday on the Surabaya part of the Suramadu Bridge. The construction of the bridge, which will connect Java and Madura islands, is nearing completion, despite land acquisition squabbles and bad weather. (JP/Achmad Faisal)

30 detained after boat chase

The Star/Asia News Network, Thu, Mar 26, 2009

KOTA TINGGI, MALAYSIA: Some 30 illegals, including five women and two little girls, from Indonesia have been detained by marine police after a 30-minute boat chase off the waters of Pulau Lima in Kota Tinggi.

Marine police officers tracked down the boat carrying the Indonesians at 11.30pm on Tuesday after receiving a tip-off from the public.

Southern Region marine police chief Asst Comm Mohd Khamsani Abd Rahman said the boat sped off after police ordered it to stop for inspection..

Police managed to corner the boat after 30 minutes, he said. ACP Mohd Khamsani said the boat's 28-year-old captain was also detained, adding:

"The illegals, aged between one and 48, are being investigated under Section 6(3)(c) of the Immigration Act for not possessing valid travel documents and Section 5(2) of the same Act for entering the country illegally.

"We have also seized the boat. We appreciated the information by the public that led to the arrests," he said.

Anyone with information have been urged to contact the police hotline at 07-221 2999 or the nearest police station.

RP, Papua New Guinea to engage in high-level talks on fishery cooperation

BusinessWorld, Philippines,

SAN JUAN, BATANGAS — The Philippines and Papua New Guinea will negotiate a bilateral agreement aimed at fostering fishery cooperation, said Malacañang yesterday.

Press Secretary Cerge M. Remonde said President Gloria M. Arroyo will discuss the agreement during Prime Minister Michael Somare’s four-day stay in the country starting this Saturday.

"The Philippines and Papua New Guinea are members of the so-called Coral Triangle Initiative countries. A joint venture of fisheries will be discussed during the state visit," he said.

Indonesia, East Timor, Malaysia, and the Solomon Islands are also part of a multilateral alliance to preserve the Coral Triangle environment. All in all, the area spans 6.5 million square kilometers and is home to over 600 reef-building corals and various fish species.

As the most diverse marine region on the planet, the Coral Triangle sustains the lives of nearly 130 million people and contains major spawning and nursery grounds for tuna.

Mr. Somare, who’s arriving in Manila on Saturday, will join Ms. Arroyo in General Santos on Monday to meet with key stakeholders in the tuna industry in the province.

Last week, the World Wide Fund urged Coral Triangle Initiative countries to negotiate for better tuna prices and fair fishing arrangements with other nations.

The six nations of the initiative — Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and the Solomon Islands — account for around 70% of the world’s tuna catch, including threatened species like big eye and yellowfin tuna.

"Protection and responsible management of these spawning grounds and migratory routes is an essential ecosystem service to the world’s multi-billion dollar tuna industry," WWF Coral Triangle Program head Lida Pet Soede was earlier quoted as saying.

"Taking advantage of this unique asset can help strengthen the position of Coral Triangle countries in their negotiations for fairer prices and fairer fishing arrangements with non-Coral Triangle nations, who also fish in these waters."

On Sunday, the visiting Papua New Guinea leader will attend a wreath laying ceremony at the Luneta Park in the morning before attending mass at San Agustin Church. Mr. Somare will also have a working lunch with business tycoon Lucio Tan after his tour of Intramuros. He will be given full arrival honors at Caticlan airport on Sunday afternoon and Ms. Arroyo will host the state dinner for him at the Shangri-La resort hotel. — B. S. Sto. Domingo

Related Article:

World Ocean Conference, 11-15 May 2009, Manado, North Sulawesi, Indonesia

Three foreign fishing boats nabbed for alleged poaching

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The marine and fishery ministry has nabbed one Vietnamese and two Thai fishing boats suspected of poaching in Indonesian part of the South China Sea.

The three foreign fishing boats were detained for violating the Law No. 31/2004 on Fishery, Aji Sularso, the ministry`s director general for supervision and control of marine and fishery natural resources, said here on Monday.

Indonesia`s patrol boat Hiu 003 apprehended a Vietnam-flagged fishing boat while the foreign boat`s crews were fishing by using an equipment called a purse seine in the Indonesia Exclusive Zone (ZEEI) in the South China Sea.

Skipper Doan Hai Van of the Vietnamese boat with no. GT 91701 TS failed to show necessary documents such as a fishery business license (SIUP) and a fishing license to the Indonesian authorities, Aji Sularso said.

The Vietnamese boat and its 23 crew members were nabbed on March 14, 2009, and currently being being at the Pontianak fishery seaport in West Kalimantan, for further investigation process, he said.

Meanwhile, the two Thai fishing boats were seized by Indonesia`s patrol boat Hiu 4 in the ZEEI`s South China Sea on March 18, 2009. The Thai boats used trawls and had no required documents, he said.

The Thai fishing boats were currently being held at the Tarempa Naval base, Anambas District, in Riau Islands Province, for investigation process, he said.

MV Thepprnchai 2 has two crew members and MV Marksia 02 has nine crew members, all of them from Thailand.

Recently, Indonesian naval vessels also captured Taiwanese and Singaporean fishing boats for poaching in Indonesian territorial waters.

Spokesman for the Navy Commodore Iskandar Sitompul earlier said the `Hwang Jyi Long` Taiwanese fishing boat was arrested in Ranai waters, Natuna islands, while the Singaporean tug boat and barge - TB Marcopolo-107 and TK Marcopolo-108 -- were captured in Bengkalis waters, North Sumatra, on March 12, 2009.