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strong>Jan. 25, p1

Indonesia is taking a tough stance against China in its fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing by confiscating Chinese vessels and severing recent privileges given to China to fish in Indonesian waters.

After confiscating more than nine Chinese-linked vessels for alleged poaching, the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry said on Friday that the government had also revoked a deal signed with China in 2013 that would give Chinese fishermen an upper hand compared with other countries to fish in Indonesia.

According to the ministry'€™s director general for capture fisheries, Gellwynn Yusuf, ministry regulation No. 56/2014 on the ban on large fishing operations by foreign vessels had also affected previous partnerships with various countries.

Your comments:

This habit of Indonesia canceling at will legal international agreements will only end in other countries not entering into agreements in the future.

I understand and fully agree with the stopping of poaching, but there has been no news yet about how Indonesia aims to process this US$2 billion in extra fish. Even if the processing plants are created, will they be accountable to international standards? Where will these fish be sold?

P. Symon Peers

Illegal fishing has been going for a long time. Fishermen from other countries ignore boundaries and fish in our seas, then sell the fish back to us. The situation may be difficult to change, but we will never be strong if we don'€™t show that we are firm. So act now!

Lady

Minister Susi is being practical. She will sink small fishing ships, but those Chinese ships with big storage cold facilities will be kept for cold storage.

I'€™d say it'€™s just big talk but with no real action against the Chinese. The government should take action against ships from all countries found fishing illegally in Indonesian waters, but it doesn'€™t dare to do anything to provoke animosity from China.

Exwin

President Jokowi has earned my respect by taking on China in this manner, as it sends a powerful message to Beijing that Indonesia means to protect its fisheries. In a more subtle tone, it'€™s a signal to China that other ASEAN countries will not tolerate intrusion from China into their territorial waters.

The big picture is protecting the integrity of Indonesia'€™s territorial claims. China needs Indonesia for its natural resources and to have access to the largest market in Southeast Asia. My prediction is that the Chinese will back off as they will be less willing to rock the boat, as it were, and risk aggravating yet another Asian country protecting its territory.

Dick Tracy

On a more general point: what is this obsession with MoU in Indonesia all about? For me it'€™s a memorandum stating that we understand each other'€™s position and usually a halfway step to a proper agreement.

The only legal effect typically is that both parties commit to drafting a binding agreement along those lines and are liable for paying for example lost legal fees for the drafting if one party later changes its mind [...] but that'€™s it.

Kantisini

The problem with being too aggressive toward the Chinese is that like Vietnam they may send gunboats. Humiliation for ABRI will not be pleasant.

Jagera

In your captured illegal fishing boat list I don'€™t see any Australian fishing boats '€” why is that? When I went to Broome in northwest Australia I saw hundreds of illegal Indonesian fishing boats. Many had been beached and many more had been destroyed.

Now you have lost your market share of illegal Indonesian fishing boats you have to scold your neighbors for taking your fish.

Pentel