JAKARTA - The Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs succeeded in repatriating eight Indonesian fishermen who were facing legal problems and had been arrested by Malaysian authorities.
A total of six fishermen from North Sumatra who were arrested by the Malaysian Authority were returned via the Batam Center International Ferry Port, Riau Islands, while the other two fishermen were sent home via Soekarno-Hatta Airport, Banten.
"This is a form of the state's presence in protecting our fishermen. We are working with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and supported by other relevant agencies to repatriate six fishermen from Langkat Regency, North Sumatra Province," said Director General of Marine and Fishery Resources Supervision of the KKP Adin Nurawaluddin via press release, Antara, Friday, December 24.
The six fishermen were picked up by officers from the Batam PSDKP Base at the Batam Center International Ferry Port on Saturday, December 19.
Currently, the six fishermen named Iwan, Muhammad Puad, Herma, Taufik Hidayat, Ibnu Arfan and Ervan have been taken to the Tanjung Uncang Flats to carry out the quarantine process first.
"In accordance with the COVID-19 prevention procedures, we will quarantine them before we return them to their original locations," said Adin.
Meanwhile, Director for Handling Violations, Teuku Elvitrasyah, said that the six fishermen were arrested by Malaysian authorities on May 5, 2021, in the waters of Kendi Island, Malaysia.
The fishermen were then detained for violating immigration regulations and underwent a trial process on November 16, 2021.
"The six fishermen were sentenced to six months in prison, but based on the calculation of the period of detention since they were arrested, the judge decided that the six fishermen had finished serving their sentences and could then be sent back to Indonesia," explained Teuku.
Teuku also explained that within a few days, as many as eight Indonesian fishermen had been repatriated from Malaysia. Previously, two fishermen from Langkat, North Sumatra named Jefri bin Hasan and Misnan bin Daud were also repatriated last Thursday via Soekarno-Hatta Airport and are currently undergoing a quarantine process at the Jakarta Athlete House.
On various occasions, the KKP has always appealed to Indonesian fishermen not to violate the territorial waters of other countries.
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