VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Jan. 26 - The Marine Affairs and Fisheries Ministry detained two Malaysian-flagged fishing vessels over poaching in the Indonesian territory of Malacca Strait and one Indonesian vessel for operating trawl fishing gear in the waters.

The Malaysian vessel KM JHF 4631 B that operated trap for catching fish was detained by the ministry's patrol ship Hiu 03, led by Ardiansyah Pamuji on January 21, acting Director General of Marine and Fisheries Resources Surveillance (PSDKP) of the ministry Antam Novambar noted in a statement here on Tuesday.

On Sunday (Jan 24), the patrol ship Hiu 01, led by Albert Essing, detained another Malaysian ship KM SLFA 4107 that operated trawl fishing gear in the waters.

"We will take stern measures and stay on the frontlines to guard the country's marine and fisheries resources. We will not move slowly to crackdown on illegal fishing," Novambar stated.

The ministry's patrol officers will not be deterred by the current extreme weather conditions in their quest to guard the country's marine and fisheries wealth.

"The arrest is testament to the fact that we have never been negligent regardless of the condition. We are not always able to catch them easily. Sometimes we have to chase them," he noted.

Novambar spoke of the authority also having arrested crew members -- three Malaysians and four Myanmarese -- of the Malaysian vessels.

The two foreign vessels were escorted to the PSDKP base in Batam and PSDKP station in Belawan.

In addition to the foreign vessels, the authority also arrested an Indonesian ship KM Baroena for operating trawl fishing gear in the Malacca Strait on Saturday (Jan 23).

The ship did not have the required document to operate the trawl, and the authority detained the skipper and crews for questioning at the PKSDP base Lampulo.

Director of Surveillance and Fleet Operation Pung Nugroho Saksono stated that the ministry will remain vigilant despite the current unfavorable weather as poachers usually operate in extreme weather. (Antaranews)

Jan. 26 - Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), in his speech at the 2021 Climate Adaptation Summit (CAS), stressed extraordinary moves to be made at the global level to control and overcome the impacts of climate change.

"The impacts of climate change are very real before us. This is especially true for archipelagic countries, such as Indonesia," the president was quoted as saying in the official statement issued by the Presidential Secretariat here on Tuesday.

In the wake of climate change, farmers and fishermen in Indonesia are left with no other choice but to adapt in order to survive, the head of state noted during the summit organized virtually.

The coastal and small island population are struggling to survive amid the rising sea levels, he pointed out.

The president affirmed that the COVID-19 pandemic that hit at least 215 countries in the world, including Indonesia, has made the challenge of addressing the impacts of climate change even more complex and tough.

"Hence, we must take extraordinary steps," President Jokowi noted.

To this end, the head of state firmly believes that every country should firstly fulfill the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC).

"Indonesia has updated the NDC to boost resilience and adaptation capacity," he noted.

Moreover, every potential of the society must be mobilized to jointly raise awareness in controlling climate change and mitigating the impacts of climate change.

"Indonesia involves the community to control climate change through the Climate Village Program that covers 20 thousand villages in 2024," he stated.

Another extraordinary step deemed necessary is intensifying global partnerships, including capacity-building cooperation in dealing with climate change for countries in the Pacific region.

"Of course, developed countries must fulfill their commitments," he stated.

The fourth extraordinary step is to continue the development of a green concept for a better world, he remarked.

The president is optimistic that the 2021 CAS would have an impact on increasing actions through solidarity, collaboration, and global collective leadership in the efforts to control and mitigate the impacts of climate change.

The online CAS 2021 was organized on January 25-26 and hosted by the Netherlands.

Several global leaders and local stakeholders partook in the summit that launched the comprehensive Adaptation Action Agenda that demarcates clear commitments to deliver concrete new endeavors and partnerships to make the world more resilient to the effects of climate change.

Leaders from 22 countries also took part in the summit with also presented UN Secretary General António Guterres and Co-Chair Global Commission on Adaptation Ban Ki-moon as speakers. (Antaranews)

Jan. 26 - Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan drew attention to this year’s target of the mangrove rehabilitation program spanning a total area of 150,000 hectares (ha).

"I request that, if possible, we attempt to (rehabilitate) 150,000 ha of critical and tsunami-prone (mangrove areas)," he noted in a written statement here on Tuesday.

Pandjaitan highlighted the target while chairing a coordination meeting held to discuss the implementation of accelerated mangrove rehabilitation programs on Monday.

Attendees at the online meeting comprised Minister of Environmental Affairs and Forestry Siti Nurbaya, Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Wahyu Trenggono, representatives of the Home Affairs Ministry and the National Development Planning Ministry/Bappenas, and Head Representative of World Bank for Indonesia and Timor Leste One Kahkonen.

Some 84 percent of the mangrove rehabilitation program’s funding in 2021 will be sourced from the State Budget (APBN), including from the Additional Assistance Budget (ABT), through the National Economic Recovery Program (PEN), while the remaining 16 percent will be derived from non-APBN sources.

A large-scale nursery would be built to support the mangrove rehabilitation program.

Pandjaitan has urged local governments across the country to support the mangrove rehabilitation program.

"We urge the Ministry of Home Affairs to coordinate, so that the provinces and districts will also help maintain the mangroves, and they will also reap the fruits of this program, as it creates jobs," he remarked.

The minister also discussed the carbon credit potential that could be optimized through the mangrove rehabilitation program. To this end, the Ministry of Environment and Forestry will identify suitable locations to serve as pilot projects for carbon trading, and regulations are also being prepared to regulate carbon trading activities.

Nurbaya emphasized the importance of the public gaining a comprehensive understanding of the program that had drawn international attention owing to its effect on the climate change agenda.

"The good news is that climate change in Indonesia is considered to be in the medium category. We have nearly become a role model country for good (mitigation of) climate change," she affirmed. (Antaranews)

Jan. 26 - The Indonesian Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla) seized Iranian- and Panamanian-flagged tankers for allegedly violating international law.

The Indonesian Foreign Ministry's spokesman, Teuku Faizasyah, here on Tuesday acknowledged the seizure of an Iranian tanker MT Horse and Panamanian-flagged tanker MT Freya.

"Currently, further investigations are being conducted to get a more complete picture of the committed violations," Faizasyah noted via text message to ANTARA.

The two tankers were seized in the waters off Pontianak, West Kalimantan, on Sunday (Jan 24), after being monitored by the KN Marore-322 radar. During that time, KN-Marore was conducting domestic maritime security and safety operations.

The ministry's spokesman steered clear of divulging details on whether the two ships were seized for allegedly conducting illegal transfer of fuel oil.

"I cannot comment on it because the investigation is still ongoing," he remarked.

On the other hand, the Iranian government has urged Indonesia to tender an explanation pertaining to the seizure of tankers. Iranian Foreign Ministry’s spokesman, Saeed Khatibzadeh, revealed that the seizure was conducted over “a technical issue and it happens in the shipping field,”

“Our Ports Organization and the ship owner company are looking to probe the cause of the issue and resolve it,” Khatibzadeh stated at a televised weekly news conference.

Iran has been accused of concealing the destination of its oil sales by shutting off identification systems on its tankers, thereby making it difficult to assess how much crude Tehran exports, as it seeks to counter US sanctions. Iran sent the MT Horse vessel to Venezuela last year to deliver 2.1 million barrels of Iranian condensate. (Antaranews)