Minister Susi Launches Fishing Moratorium Plan

Jakarta Globe, Nuriy Azizah Susetyo, Dec 04, 2014

Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti speaking to reporters
on Wednesday. (Antara Photo/Wahyu Putro A.)

Jakarta. In a bid to preserve the nation’s marine ecosystem and resources, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti wants to impose a moratorium on fishing in large swathes of Indonesia’s Exclusive Economic Zone.

Speaking at a Jakarta Foreign Correspondents Club event held at the Intercontinental Hotel on Thursday, Susi proposed that fishing be limited to a zone of 12 nautical miles to 20 nautical miles from the coast, and that there should not be any such activities beyond the 40 nautical mile point.

Generally speaking, the EEZ extends to a distance of 200 nautical miles, or 370 kilometers, from the coast.

The minister said Indonesia should use the marine resources located in the 12 nautical miles to 20 nautical miles zone, with detailed regulations on fishing quotas, the permitted size and type of catch and tools to be used, still to follow.

Susi added that she had already submitted a proposal to President Joko Widodo to issue a presidential decree that would serve as legal basis for the moratorium.

Meanwhile, the coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs, Tedjo Edy Purdjianto, said on Thursday that the government was going to scuttle three Vietnamese ships that were confiscated after they were found to be involved in illegal fishing in Indonesian waters, in Riau Islands province.

“The message is: don’t even think about fishing in Indonesian waters illegally,” Tedjo said after meeting Joko, adding that the sinking was ordered by the president himself.