Minister Of KKP Susi Pudjiastuti Affirms Pari Manta Animals Protected In Today's Memory, November 26, 2016

Portraits of manta fish which are protected animals. (ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Today's memory, eight years ago, November 26, 2016, Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP), Susi Pudjiastuti emphasized that the Manta fish is protected in Indonesia. He considers the foreign tourism population to be included in the vulnerable category.

Susi forbade all kinds of arrests of manta rays and the sale of her body parts. Previously, the Lembata community was used to capturing the Manta rays. This tradition has been carried out for years. They mostly hunt for the needs of fishermen's families.

Traditional fisherman Lamalera, Lembata Regency, NTT has been hunting whales and manta rays for hundreds of years. They arrested him for family consumption. Not for bisis. Usually, the meat from the catch is also distributed to widows, the poor, and orphans.

This tradition has indeed received protests from here and there. However, in the name of respecting tradition, the lifestyle continues. The problem arose when Goris Dengekae Krova gave the insang pari Manta of a guest from outside Lembata Island.

Goris did not expect payment. However, guests gave him 250 thousand for four dry insang. No celebration. Even dry insang is considered goris only to be pork for him.

In fact, Goris' acquaintance wanted to install a large amount of 25 kilograms of insang (30-40 pieces of pari). Goris also tried to collect the amount requested to reach six sacks. Goris then delivered to Lewoleba.

In fact, the arrival of Goris to Lewoleba has been predicted. The security forces arrested him on charges of selling wildlife on November 22, 2016. All of this was because the manta rays were included in protected animals through Ministerial Decree Number 4 of 2014.

Goris' arrests led to protests from Lamalera fishermen everywhere. They met local officials. They think that what makes the manta pari vulnerable is not because of hunting, but because of trade between countries.

Pope and rays are not captured every day. In addition, for the needs of fishermen's families, usually whale meat is distributed to the poor, widows, and orphans. Researchers from the People's Coalition for Fisheries, Farid Ridwanuddin, believe that the Lamalera tradition will threaten whales and manta rays is excessive.

According to him, what threatens is not the tradition of local people, but trade between countries. If the government wants to invest, protect it from industrial interests," said Abdul Manan and John Seo in their report in Tempo magazine entitled Terjebak Order Insang Pari (2017).

The problem of catching the hands of a Lamaleran resident who wanted to sell the pari insang reached the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, Susi Pudjiastuti. Susi also reiterated that the manta rays were protected animals on November 26, 2016. The arrests and sale of parts of the pari body cannot be justified.

Susi appreciated the steps taken by the security forces for daring to make arrests. He thought that the arrest of goris was so that no one would sell or arrest the foreign tourism. Goris' arrest became an affirmation that government regulations must be enforced.

"Pari Manta is a type of marine biota that is threatened with extinction in Indonesian territory. This is regulated in the Decree of the Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries No. 4/2014 concerning the Determination of the Full Protection Status of Pari Manta," said Susi Pudjiastuti in a written statement as quoted by the ANTARA website, November 26, 2016.