13 Indonesian Fishermen Caught In Law In Malaysia, Only 3 People Were Repatriated

Three Indonesian fishermen (white and black shirts)/ Photo: Antara

JAKARTA - Three fishermen from North Sumatra Province who were arrested by Malaysian authorities have been repatriated. As stated by the Director General of Marine and Fishery Resources Supervision, Rear Admiral TNI Adin Nurawaluddin, the repatriation effort was carried out after the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) coordinated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Governments.

"These three fishermen were successfully repatriated on Tuesday (5 October), after undergoing a legal process in Malaysia and going through an 8-day quarantine period at Wisma Atlet Jakarta," said Adin Nurawaluddin, in a press release in Jakarta, Sunday 10 October.

According to Adin, the repatriation of the three fishermen was successfully carried out thanks to good coordination between the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Regional Government of North Sumatra Province and the Langkat Regency Government.

For this reason, he expressed his appreciation for the synergy carried out with the ranks of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Regional Government, so that the repatriation of the three Indonesian fishermen was successfully carried out.

Although he regrets the actions taken by fishermen who cross borders, Adin continued, his party guarantees that the KKP will continue to coordinate with other relevant agencies including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to assist fishermen who face legal problems in other countries.

"We will continue to comply with the applicable regulations. The fishermen we escort will also be given education so they will no longer violate inter-country fishing limits," he said.

Meanwhile, the Director of Violation Handling, Teuku Elvitrasyah explained that there are still 10 Indonesian fishermen who are currently undergoing legal processes in Malaysia.

"There are still 10 fishermen whose legal process has not been declared over, including 4 fishermen in Lumut, 4 fishermen in Johor, and 2 people in Penang," he said.

In addition to overseeing the development of the legal process that is running against Indonesian fishermen, he continued, his party will also continue to monitor the activities of Indonesian fishermen who have the potential to cross borders into neighboring waters.

“We continue to intensify socialization to increase the compliance of fishing communities so that they do not cross the borders of other countries. Supervision of the activities of Indonesian fishermen is also tightened to minimize violations committed by fishermen in border areas," said Teuku.