Australian Arrested 15 Merauke Fishermen Repatriation Waits For Indonesian Consulate General's Notification

Illustrations - Indonesian fishing boats. BETWEEN/HO/Documentation.

The Head of Merauke Border Office, Rekianus Samkakai, stated that the repatriation of 15 Merauke fishermen who were arrested by the Australian Authority was still waiting for a notification from the Indonesian Consulate General (KJRI) in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. "It is true that until now there has been no notification or notification regarding the repatriation of 15 fishermen from Merauke, South Papua. The 15 fishermen are still in quarantine in Darwin," said Merauke Border Head Rekianus Samkakai to Antara, Wednesday, July 3. The 15 fishermen who were arrested were crew members of the ship (ABK) from two fishing vessels. Australian authorities previously arrested two fishing boats from Merauke, South Papua, for fishing in the Australian region, namely (KMN) Nurlela, carrying eight crew members arrested on June 18 and KMN Putra Iksan arrested on June 21 carrying seven crew members. "The two fishing boats have been destroyed by the Australian Authority," said Rekianus Samkakai. Meanwhile, the Indonesian Consul General in Darwin, Bagus Hendraning Kobarsih separately admitted that the statement from the Australian Border Force (ABF) revealed that the plan to return fishermen was hampered by flights due to limited seats. ABF is still looking for full flights to Denpasar because it is currently a school holiday in Australia. "There is a possibility that by the end of this week there will be a repatriation schedule and only two people on each flight," explained the Indonesian Consul General in Darwin, Bagus Hendraning Kobarsih.

15 fishermen who were detained in Darwin, Australia, namely ABK KMN Nurlela, totaling eight people, namely Hendra Seputra, Andreas, Nelson Domitiy, Demitarius Mangar, Muhamad Wahyudin, Persyarat Lefuray and Wifner Warkey. The crew from KMN Putera Iksan, totaling seven people, namely Ahmad, Rudi, Janneng, Nangda, Jemnisi, Herman and Suristo.