Jakarta
Navy chief of staff Adm. Yudo Margono has canceled the ceremony for Dharma Samudera (Oceanic Service) Day and instead deployed naval vessels to assist the search and rescue (SAR) efforts to find the wreckage of Sriwijaya Air flight SJ182, which crashed into the Java Sea on Saturday afternoon “Humanitarian operations are more important and of higher priority so we’ve canceled the Dharma Samudera Day ceremony to focus on the search and rescue [operations],” Yudo said in a media statement issued on Sunday. Dharma Samudera Day commemorates the Battle of Arafura Sea on Jan. 15, 1962, in which Cdre. Yosaphat Sudarso was killed when his fast torpedo boat KRI Macan Tutul was sunk by a Dutch destroyer. Several Navy ships and personnel were to be deployed to Lampa Strait in Natuna regency, Riau Islands, for the ceremony scheduled for Friday. Yudo also ordered all Navy...