China protests arrest of fishermen

The Jakarta Post ,  Pontianak   |  Tue, 06/23/2009 7:50 PM  |  National

The Chinese government has filed an official protest against Indonesia over the recent arrest of Chinese fishermen operating in Indonesia’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, state news agency Antara has reported.

Head of the Pontianak Fishery and Ocean Resources Monitoring Agency, Bambang Nugroho, said Tuesday his office had detained the eight vessels and all 77 fishermen on board after they were caught fishing on their way to the office of the West Kalimantan Fishery and Ocean Agency.

“Legally, any ships may cross the zone, but they are not allowed to catch fish in the waters,” Bambang said.

He added that his office had received word of the protest, lodged by China’s consulate mediator.
Aji Sularso, general director of the Fishery and Oceanic Resources Monitoring Agency, confirmed the complaint last night.

“We will pursue the legal processes and punish them for their violations. We will continue to detain them even if they pay for compensation,” Aji said. (ewd)

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