REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The exploitation of sea fish in Indonesia may last only for a generation unless sustainable practices are implemented, Indonesian Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources Susi Pudjiastuti stated.

"Without sustainability, the exploitation of fish resources in our seas may be effective only for a generation or even less," she stated as the key speaker in the symposium on "Sea, the Future of the Nation" at the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources here on Wednesday.

Pointing to her 30-year experience in the private aviation business, Pudjiastuti admitted to have often only seen big fishing vessels operating in the Indonesian waters so far.

She agreed to the fact that the biggest challenge currently posed is a reduction in marine resources as they have often been exploited by big fishing vessels from abroad.

"I am aware that the potential is huge, but on a day-to-day basis, the fish reserves are depleting," she pointed out.

Soon after being inaugurated as minister of fisheries and marine resources, Pudjiastuti said she was focusing on overcoming the problem, and in the past few months, she had implemented five regulations ranging from moratorium and transshipment ban to sustainable fishing.

The minister said that on the basis of data from the National Statistics Agency, the number of fishermen families had dropped from 1.6 million to 800 thousand across Indonesia in just one decade.

"It means that the fishing profession is no longer considered to be interesting and lucrative on which one could rely on for one's survival," she pointed out.

Susi emphasized that the decline in the number of fishermen served as an eye-opener that something had gone wrong and needed correction.

Speaking in connection with fish poaching, the minister acknowledged that it was a global issue and countries, such as Japan, the European Union, and the United States also faced the same challenge.

"In the past week, we have caught seven Vietnamese fishing boats," she revealed.

She admitted to being surprised that foreign ships still continued to poach in the Indonesian waters, although her office had issued a policy to sink them.

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