Jakarta (Indonesia), 16 February 2024 – Late night in early December, a fishing vessel engaged in illegal activities was intercepted off the coast of Rembang, Central Java, Indonesia, by the country’s Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (KKP). The KKP patrol boat that detected the vessel used nightlights and satellite imagery data provided by Skylight, a maritime intelligence platform.
The operation was the result of close cooperation efforts between the KKP, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and Skylight. Since 2020, the three entities have been working together to enhance the capacity and capability of the KKP in maritime domain awareness (MDA) – the understanding of anything associated with the maritime domain that could impact security – and law enforcement.
“This operation is just one of many examples that demonstrate the effectiveness and impact of the partnership between the KKP and UNODC in improving maritime transparency and protecting the ocean from crimes in the fisheries sector,” said Fatimana Agustinanto, Programme Officer at UNODC. “It also shows the commitment and determination of the KKP to enforce the law and safeguard Indonesia’s marine resources.”
Skylight offers a product that combines artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms to identify suspicious vessel behaviour and alert authorities. UNODC, through its Global Maritime Crime Programme, facilitates Skylight’s platform and services to the KKP at no cost, as well as communication and data sharing between Skylight and the KKP. UNODC and Skylight also consistently provide MDA training to KKP analysts to ensure the effective use of these MDA tools.
“Fisheries crime is no longer limited to only illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, but the concept has expanded to cover a much broader spectrum of associated crimes taking place on fishing vessels or related to fisheries operations, including human trafficking, forced labour, drug trafficking, illegal transshipment of fuel, arms and other goods, as well as money laundering and other custom-related crimes,” said Erik van der Veen, UNODC Country Manager for Indonesia. “For this reason, fisheries crime continues to pose a serious threat to national and regional maritime security.”
Indonesia has been leading efforts to combat crimes in the fisheries sector since its 2016 initiative to establish regional cooperation to counter such crimes. The country revealed in its 2016 initiative brief to the United Nations that all of the one thousand fishing vessels caught fishing illegally in Indonesia had also violated other laws and regulations, including forgery of vessels documents, deactivation of vessel transmitters, and illegal transshipment, among others.
To combat the issue, the KKP has been conducting regular patrols and operations to detect and deter illegal activities related to fisheries crime in its waters, with the support of UNODC and its partner Skylight. These efforts are funded by the U.S. Government, as part of its support to UNODC and its efforts to combat transnational organized crime in the maritime domain.
The KKP and UNODC will continue to work together to strengthen Indonesia’s capacity to fight against fisheries crime and other maritime crimes in the region.
Click here to learn more about UNODC's Global Maritime Crime Programme.
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