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View all search resultsSetting the right course on maritime law enforcement discourse
An ongoing judicial review before the Constitutional Court concerning the criminal investigation power of the Indonesian Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla) exposes a structural problem of thinking upon maritime law enforcement.
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A Maritime and Security Agency (Bakamla) high-speed boat moves on June 23, 2023, in the Tanjung Uncang waters in Batam, Riau Islands.
(Kompas/Hadi Maulana)
T
he ongoing judicial review No. 180/PUU-XXIII/2025 before the Constitutional Court concerning the criminal investigation power of the Indonesian Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla) exposes a structural problem of thinking upon maritime law enforcement in Indonesia.
The petitioner argued that Bakamla’s authority to arrest, detain and seize vessels contradicts criminal procedure law because Bakamla is not an investigator (penyidik) within the criminal justice system. The case arose after Bakamla detained the petitioner’s vessel for further examination over an alleged violation. This clearly shows the dominance of a land-based criminal law enforcement thinking framework which can not be sustained when we are discussing maritime law enforcement.
Law enforcement at sea differs fundamentally from law enforcement on land (terra firma). Law enforcement officers at sea, due to the natural condition of the sea, have only a few options to act compared to what can be done by the officers on land. The ocean waves often provide enforcement officers at sea no opportunity to stand on one point steadily.
Stopping, boarding, inspecting and arresting vessels are actions that maritime law officers can do at sea. This is the foundation of maritime law enforcement as enshrined by the Law of the Sea Convention, designed not exclusively for investigator (penyidik) in the investigation (penyidikan) phase. Judicial proceedings, which include investigation and prosecution, is a step after a thorough checking on whether any criminal act exist.
Bringing a vessel to the nearest safe location, such as a port, serves a greater purpose of ensuring the safety of the enforcement officers and the people on board the inspected vessel. Additionally, it is also for the purpose of ensuring the checking/verification by the officers will be done properly.
On another note, there are other laws that govern the power to stop, board, inspect and arrest vessels by non-investigator. Fisheries law, for instance, stipulates the authority of fisheries inspectors (pengawas perikanan) equipped with such authorities, as well as customs law (pejabat bea dan cukai) and shipping law (pengawas pelayaran). Should these non-investigators be eliminated and replaced with investigators for the purpose of law enforcement at sea?
The main purpose of sea patrol is to ensure compliance. It doesn’t always have to end in criminal court. Requiring all patrol officials to be investigators also risks the business environment since the purpose of investigation, according to the Criminal Procedure Code, is to find and collect evidence of a criminal act and find the suspect. The presumption of innocence principle forbids stopping, boarding and inspection at sea directly for the purpose of finding evidence and suspects. Criminal Procedure Code governs a phase before penyidikan, that is penyelidikan, to determine the existence of criminal acts of an event. Once criminal nature is found, officers will enter the penyidikan phase.
