“We were helped by the Indonesian Military and National Police in sinking the vessels in 12 locations. They are Aceh; Ambon and Ternate in Maluku; Bali; Belawan in Medan, North Sumatra; Bitung, North Sulawesi; Merauke, Papua; Natuna and Tarempa in Riau Islands; Pontianak, West Kalimantan; Sorong, West Papua; and Tarakan in North Kalimantan,” Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti said as quoted by kompas.com.

Susi directly led the procession to sink the 81 vessels from Morela Beach in Ambon. The minister was in contact with 11 other areas where dozens of vessels were sunk via a video conference call and live streaming. The vessels were sunk starting at 10 a.m. Jakarta time using explosives with a measured explosion capacity. 

“We have made calculations so that this will not affect the environment, sea conservation areas and the safety of our sea navigation,” said Susi.

Of the total, 46 vessels were Vietnamese flagged, 18 were from the Philippines, 11 from Malaysia and six were Indonesian vessels.

Meanwhile, SINO 36, an Indonesian-flagged vessel with a capacity of 268 gross tonnage, was confiscated by the state through a court ruling. The government would use the vessels as a monument to depict Indonesia’s efforts in combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. Indonesia has sunk 317 ships since October 2014. (dis/ebf)

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