REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA – Indonesia has not done enough to protect its territorial waters. In fact, the territory covers two-third of Indonesia and it is prone to security threats.
"Illegal fishing, human trafficking, pirates, orangutan smuggling, and many criminal activities happen in Indonesian water," a renowned maritime expert, Hasyim Djalal, said, in Maritime Security and Law of the Sea Course on Tuesday.
Indonesian territorial waters is approximately 5.8 million kilometers square. The pirate case in Somalia and armed piracy in Malaka Strait should become important notes for Indonesia, he added. He warns the authorities must conduct preventive measure in regional areas.
"We have found many maritime violations in the sea of Kalimantan Mindanau, Aceh, or other borders because there are no security," he said.
The Head of Coordinating Agency of Sea Security, Laksamana Madya Didik Heru Purnomo, said, at least 92 small islands located in the borders. Located in the outer point of Indonesia, 12 of them need special attention.
He tries to implement the maritime law and protect for the sake of the safety of fishermen or trading zone. Should there is no security, the zone can be controlled by pirates. "The stealing of sea assets and sea pollution still occur," he said.
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