I

n a meeting with President Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo on Monday, a group of experts urged the President to alleviate tensions revolving around a recent maritime spat with China and called on members of his government to not make any emotionally driven moves that could put ties between the two countries at risk.

The group, comprising mostly political science experts from the University of Indonesia, said that rather than trying to up the ante in the spat, the government should focus on strengthening the legal standing of the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry so that its prosecution against illegal fishing activities in the country'€™s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) could win the support of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in the event of resistance from foreign vessels.

A spokesperson for the group, Connie Rahakundini Bakrie, said that the IMO only recognized ships deployed by the country'€™s Navy and those belonging to the government or coast guard to operate in the EEZ, and it was important for the ministry to register its patrol ships as government ships with the international organization for its prosecution of illegal fishing in the EEZ to be acknowledged and protected by international law.

'€œDomestically, the ministry'€™s ships fall under the government vessel category like coast guard ships, but the IMO has yet to recognize them as such,'€ said Connie, who also chairs the Indonesian Institute for Maritime Studies.

Jokowi met with the group on Monday following a maritime incident involving vessels deployed by the ministry and Chinese coast guard vessels in the waters of Natuna.

Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti called China arrogant and accused its coast guard of obstructing law enforcement after the incident, in which officers from the Chinese coast guard intercepted Indonesian patrol boats towing the 2,000 gross-ton Kway Fey 10078, a Chinese fishing boat caught operating illegally near the Natuna Islands.

In a statement following the incident, Susi threatened to take China to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.

The experts warned that the legal move would not only harm bilateral ties between Indonesia and China but Indonesia would likely lose the legal battle, as the ministry'€™s vessels involved in the incident were not recognized by the IMO.

'€œI remind the President and the government to not get riled up over the Natuna issue despite some urging that they take the case to the international court'€ Connie said.

Connie also said the government needed to quickly make a clear distinction regarding the roles of the Navy, the coast guard and the ministry'€™s anti-illegal fishing ships to avoid any overlapping authorities on the field.

Although the Foreign Ministry has sent a formal protest letter to Beijing and demanded clarification from China over the Natuna incident, it appears to have distanced itself from Susi'€™s proposal to bring the case to international court and has instead opted to settle the crisis through diplomatic channels.

Separately, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Arrmanatha Nasir said that his ministry was still waiting for a response from Beijing regarding the Natuna incident.

When asked about Susi'€™s proposal to take China to an international tribunal, Arrmanatha said: '€œNot every problem should be resolved with overreaction.'€

He said that Indonesia continued to ask Beijing to hand over the '€œrescued'€ Kway Fey ship to allow for the prosecution of eight crew members arrested and detained by Indonesian authorities during the incident.