KUALA LUMPUR: A Malaysian-registered fishing vessel which allegedly conducted illegal fishing activities was bombed by Indonesian authorities yesterday.
According to Indonesian news agency Jakarta Post, the trawler was sunk by the republic’s police in North Sumatra for illegal fishing off Pandan Islet recently.
The agency quoted North Sumatra police chief Inspector General Eko Hadi who said the sinking of the ship, which features registration number PKFA 7738, was approved by the Indonesian court.
“After getting approval from the district court head, we used dynamite to destroy and sink the ship,” he was quoted as saying.
The trawler was destroyed in Belawan waters. It was the first time that the North Sumatra police had sunk a foreign vessel for fishing illegally.
However, the news report did not state the fate of the vessel’s crew members.
Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo had last year instructed the republic’s authorities to take stern action against foreign fishing vessels which are found fishing illegally in their waters.
Source: https://sg.news.yahoo.com
