On June 5 this year, 2 sailors– Reynalfi, 22, and Andri Juniansyah, 30– jumped off Chinese-flagged fishing vessel Fu Lu Qing Yuan Yu 901 as soon as it entered Indonesia’s territorial waters in the Malacca Strait.
After about seven hours adrift, they were rescued by local fishermen from Tanjung Balai Karimun, Riau Island, Sumatra.
The two Indonesian crew members supposedly decided to jump off the vessel because they might not withstand the treatment they received on board.
The two Indonesian people were apparently victims of human trafficking, according to a report by Destructive Fishing Watch (DFW).
” The allegation of forced labor emerged after we discovered offenses such as unpaid incomes, bad working conditions, threats and intimidation, [all of] which Andri Juniansyah and Reynalfi experienced,” DFW Indonesia coordinator M. Abdi Suhufan told the media.
According to DFW data, a minimum of 30 Indonesian crew members have actually been victims of such infractions on board Chinese vessels in between November, 2019 and June,2020 Seven of the team supposedly passed away, 3 stay missing, and 20 have actually made it through.
With numerous cases coming to light, the DFW has actually required a moratorium and assessment of the policy of sending Indonesian seafarers to work on Chinese-flagged fishing vessels.
There have actually been allegations of human trafficking and required labor versus irresponsible wrongdoers at home, who have actually been sending out Indonesian seafarers to deal with Chinese fishing boats, Suhufan kept in mind.
Reports on the ill-treatment of Indonesian anglers on Chinese fishing boats have set off an uproar in the world’s largest archipelagic country.
Previously this year, a questionable video emerged of the sea burial of an Indonesian seafarer on a Chinese-flagged fishing vessel. Later, news came to light of 46 Indonesian crew members withstanding violence and ill-treatment on 4 Chinese ships: Long Xing 629, Long Xing 605, Long Xing 606, and Tian Yu 8
4 of the 46 Indonesian team members passed away: 3 of them died on the boats and their bodies were buried at sea, while the other team member succumbed to a disease in South Korea. Most of the enduring crew members were repatriated to Indonesia.
In early Might this year, Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi summoned Chinese Ambassador to Indonesia Xiao Qian to express concerns over the supposed mistreatment of Indonesian workers on Chinese fishing vessels.
” In regard to the burial at sea for the 3 Indonesians, the Indonesian government has actually again demanded information on whether the burials followed ILO [International Labor Organization] standards. The Indonesian government has actually also revealed concerns over the poor living conditions on the ships that allegedly caused the death of the four Indonesian crew members,” she said.
She also demanded that Chinese authorities investigate the working conditions on the fishing ships.
” If the investigation discovers that there’s an infraction, then we want the Chinese authorities to promote enforcement that is fair,” she said.
Indonesia has likewise asked the Chinese federal government to assist ensure that Chinese business promote workers’ rights, including payment of wages, and provide safe working conditions.
In his action, the Chinese ambassador assured Indonesian officials that his government would make sure the companies support guidelines and agreements.
Later on, the Chinese Government and the operators of fishing ships Long Xing 629 and Tian Yu 8 argued the sea burials of Indonesian seafarers, who passed away throughout service, were in keeping with ILO rules.
They likewise claimed the team members were buried at sea with the approval of their families.
On the other hand, the Indonesian Police’s Bad guy Examination Department (Bareskrim) and the Chinese authorities are collectively examining cases of abuse involving lots of Indonesian seafarers on Chinese-flagged boats.
” Indonesia expects a fair and transparent resolution to the investigation into cases (of violence and human trafficking) by the Chinese authorities,” Foreign Minister Marsudi stated on June 12, 2020.
Worried over reports of seafarer abuse, Speaker of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR), Bambang Soesatyo, has advised police to carry out a comprehensive examination.
” The cops must perform an investigation into the alleged abuse of Indonesian team members on Chinese ships, and along with the Foreign Affairs Ministry, submit a suit if there is proof of abuse,” Soesatyo, popularly referred to as Bamsoet, said.
Authorities need to summon the manning agent who hired the two sailors– Reynalfi and Andri Juniansyah– who leapt off their vessel in Malacca Strait, he stated.
The agent can be charged with possible fraud since, based on their work contracts, the 2 crewmen were to be sent to fabric and steel plants in South Korea and paid Rp25 million to Rp40 million monthly, the Golkar political leader stated.
” There is an indicator of unlawful recruitment of sailors. For this reason, the representative needs to be held accountable in the event,” he stressed.
The government must improve the tracking of Indonesian migrant workers and be more selective in releasing work allows to Indonesians hired as migrant workers, he said. It must take serious procedures against reckless recruitment firms, he added.
In the meantime, GP Ansor, a youth wing of Indonesia’s biggest Muslim organization, Nahdlatul Ulama, has actually knocked the news of Chinese fishing boats burying the bodies of three Indonesian crew at sea, hinting they were likely victims of “human trafficking”.
The “human disaster” including sailors is proof of “modern-day slavery”, stated chairman of the GP Ansor’s central executive board, Yaqut Cholil Qoumas.
The Chinese fishing companies that hired the seafarers must excuse the incident and satisfy all normative rights of the departed employees, he included.
The representatives who recruited the Indonesian seafarers are likewise being examined by the Human Trafficking Criminal Offense Task Force, according to head of the National Police’s General Crime Unit, Cops Brigadier General Ferdy Sambodo.
The authorities think the departures of the ship’s crew members were not carried out in accordance with proper procedures.
The cases have actually exposed that modern-day slavery still exists in the fisheries sector, and highlighted the need to end it instantly.
Related news: Indonesia expects transparent investigation into China boat abuses
Associated news: Moratorium on seafarer recruitment short-term answer: ministry
