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‘Awkward’ fisheries intervention clouds Oz minister’s visit
Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne heads to Jakarta this week after the country's maritime forces destroyed three Indonesian fishing boats and booted 13 more out of its waters to deter illegal fishing practices.
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A boat that had allegedly been used for illegal fishing is destroyed by Australian authorities in a protected marine sanctuary off the northern coast of Western Australia in this picture released by the Australian Border Force on Nov. 8. (Courtesy of Australian Border Force/-)
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ustralian authorities demonstrated “resolve” against illegal fishers from Indonesia on Monday as they resorted to an all-too-familiar tactic of deterrence ahead of Foreign Minister Marise Payne’s visit to Jakarta this week.
Australia’s Maritime Border Command (MBC) raised eyebrows across the Timor Sea when they intercepted Indonesian boats caught allegedly fishing off the northern coast of Western Australia and set some of them on fire.
The MBC said it had intercepted 16 Indonesian vessels operating in the Rowley Shoals, about 160 miles of the nearest Australian coast, escorting 13 and destroying three as a deterrence measure.
MBC commander Rear Adm. Mark Hill stated that the burning of the ships aimed to “demonstrate the resolve that we have to counter illegal fishing”, according to a report by Australian public broadcaster ABC News.
While neighbors Indonesia and Australia have a unique fisheries resources arrangement set up for economic activities along their maritime borders, it was clear that the recent arrest was made inside Australian territory, said I Made Andi Arsana, an Australia-educated lecturer of geodetics engineering at Gadjah Mada University (UGM).
“The Rowley Shoals Marine Park is far to our south and much nearer to Australia. [...] Indonesian fishermen are not supposed to be fishing there,” he said on Monday.
Under a bilateral deal, Indonesia’s traditional fisherfolk are allowed to fish at the Ashmore Reef due to historic and ongoing cultural and economic associations, but it is located further north, close to East Nusa Tenggara.
