Fishy Business

Posted by AsiaViews | Nov 13, 2017 | 0 |

New Straits Times

Nov 9, 2017

MARINE capture fishery business makes up an important sector in the Malaysian economy. And, it is a major source of food, employment and a substantial source of foreign exchange. Well, if they are not stolen, that is. The Fisheries Department says Malaysia loses some 980 million tons of fish worth RM6 billion every year. The 6,000kg of fish and 100kg of squid seized on Sunday from a foreign fishing boat 23 nautical miles off Pulau Tioman were part of the losses. According to the department’s figures, only about 50 per cent of marine catch landed in the country, while the rest made their way to our ASEAN neighbors. This is not good news for Malaysians, who eat 53kg of fish per capita per year. Not only fish resources are being depleted by overfishing, but also through theft by foreign fishermen, with Malaysian complicity. Such activities are contributing to decline in landings and catch figures. Output per fishermen has also declined for all regions in the country. Not to mention loss of foreign exchange.

The foreign boats and trawlers are not only robbing our national coffers, they are stopping our fish from reaching the dinner table. Some unscrupulous Malaysian businessmen appear to be working with foreign fishermen by leasing their licenses. New Sunday Times broke the story on July 9 stating that rent-seekers with little to no knowledge were leasing out their deep-sea fishing licenses to foreign fishermen trawling in Malaysian waters. The Terengganu Fishermen Association says each license is being rented out for RM5,000 a month. Some of the businessmen are alleged to be in possession of 20 licences. Some serious questions are in order. Why are licenses being issued to businessmen who are not fishermen? And, why 20 licenses to one individual? There has to be an equitable way of awarding licenses to fishermen so that their livelihood is not adversely affected. Like in many things, efficient and effective enforcement can only work if government agencies collaborate. If they have not done so, it is time the Fisheries Department, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) and Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission put men and material together to stop the theft of this billion ringgit national resource. The aged vessels of the Fisheries Department is in dire need of assistance of the more modern and robust fleet of MMEA.

At the transnational level, encroachment by foreign fishing vessels need to be put as an urgent item for resolution on the ASEAN agenda. If the members of the regional body can work together, perhaps encroachment into territorial waters of member countries can be stopped at source. Just as Malaysian fishermen should not fish in our neighbors’ waters, our neighbors’ fishermen should not fish in our waters, too. To give bite to the bark, ASEAN members may want to consider passing national laws imposing severe penalties for fishing in neighbors’ waters. Complicity by nationals in such illegal activities should draw even more severe punishment.

We are already losing our marine resources to climate change; we do not want foreign fishermen to rob us off the rest of the catch.

(https://www.nst.com.my/opinion/leaders/2017/11/301090/fishy-business)

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EXTRICATING NDONESIAN CHILDREN FROM ISIS INFLUENCE ABROAD

Indonesia urgently needs to revisit the possibility of repatriating the neediest of its young citizens stranded abroad, whose families had earlier joined ISIS. Most of these children are in camps in northern Syria but there are also small numbers in the Philippines, Afghanistan and Iraq. “Extricating Indonesian Children from ISIS Influence Abroad”, the latest report from the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) argues that the government could begin by bringing back small groups of unaccompanied children under ten years of age, who pose minimal security risk and are most vulnerable to deteriorating conditions in the camps.“The problem is that health and security conditions are worsening by the day in the Syrian camps, and the children are growing older,” says Dyah Kartika, IPAC analyst. “They need access to schools, a nurturing environment, and medical attention. If the government waits too long, the children will be further exposed to ISIS ideology.” The new report examines a 2019 list of Indonesians in camps and prisons run by the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Indonesian government has been trying to verify their citizenship, but with pseudonyms, misspellings and bad transliterations, it is a daunting task. At the time the data was collected, between March and June 2019, there were 555 Indonesians in SDF camps and prisons, including 367 children. Among the children, approximately 277 were under the age of ten and 34 were unaccompanied. In June 2021, there are fewer than ten children who are both unaccompanied and under the age of ten that could be prioritized for return. Bringing back children of ISIS families is no easy task. The report analyses the main challenges faced by the Indonesian government. These include definitional issues, bureaucratic competition, the difficulty of verifying nationality, evaluating the toll of exposure to conflict, assessing security risk, and finding relatives or others willing to provide care once the children are returned. In addition, COVID has meant stringent restrictions on travel, placing further obstacles in the way of repatriation. There are several models for rehabilitation of children exposed to violent extremism in Indonesia that could be modified to accommodate the needs of children repatriated from abroad. The report examines these models and argues that the government does not need to have every detail of rehabilitation programs in place before it starts extricating children from ISIS influence. It can start by bringing back the most vulnerable children and then modify programs as needed.

“It’s important that the government see these children as victims” says Dyah. “They deserve a chance to be children again.”

Fishy Business