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Indonesia opts for diplomacy to free sailor
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Four Vietnamese-flagged fishing boats were caught by an Indonesian maritime patrol boat for allegedly fishing in Indonesian waters. As many as 44 of the 55 Vietnamese sailors escaped and were rescued by a Vietnamese coast guard vessel, which obstructed the arrest by Indonesian authorities. (The Jakarta Post/Source)
I
ndonesian maritime patrol officer Gunawan Wibisono, who is in Vietnamese detention following an attempt to arrest alleged Vietnamese poachers, may have to spend more time away from his family as the government has decided to take a diplomatic approach to releasing him.
Gunawan was held by the Vietnamese authorities after the KH 97579 TS fishing boat he was guarding was reportedly rammed by the CSB8005 a Vietnamese coast guard vessel.
The fishing boat was one of five Vietnamese-flagged fishing boats arrested by maritime patrol boat KM Hiu Macan 01, belonging to the Maritime and Fisheries Resources Monitoring (PSDKP) Directorate General of the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry, for alleged poaching in Natuna waters, Riau Islands, on Sunday.
The ministry’s secretary general, Rifky Effendi Hardijanto, confirmed on Tuesday that Gunawan was being held in Vietnam. He said that Indonesia and Vietnam had decided to resolve the matter through diplomatic channels.
The intervention by the Vietnamese coast guard also led to the release of 44 of the 55 apprehended Vietnamese crew. When the Vietnamese vessel hit the boat guarded by Gunawan, the Hiu Macan was some 9 nautical miles north of the location after just completing the arrest of KH 90206 TS, the last of the five fishing boats, according to an official military report obtained by The Jakarta Post.
Receiving the report of the approaching Vietnamese coast guard, the Hiu Macan put on maximum speed to get to Gunawan’s location only to see the boat he had been guarding sinking and him being brought aboard the Vietnamese ship.
“Negotiations to recover Gunawan failed as they [the Vietnamese] required the release of the remaining arrested Vietnamese crew and boats,” the document stated.
