REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Indonesia will host Our Ocean Conference 2018 to discuss the best way to address a wide range of issues related to international territorial waters.
"Indonesia has committed itself to host Our Ocean Conference in 2018 in Bali," Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti said here on Thursday (9/22).
The minister attended the third Our Ocean Conference held by the US Department of State from September 15 to 16 this year. The first and second such meetings were held in Washington DC in 2014 and Chile in 2015.
On the first day of the conference this year, the minister spoke of Indonesia's role in combating Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and conserving marine and fishery resources.
She noted that illegal fishing is an organized transnational fishery crime which involves more than one country.
While describing illegal fishing as a serious crime, the minister said illegal fishing also serves as a gateway to commit other crimes including human trafficking, human rights violation, drug and endangered animal smuggling.
On the second day of the conference, the Indonesian minister, along with Australian, Norwegian and Senegalese foreign ministers and the European Union commissioner for the environment, maritime affairs and fisheries also addressed the conference.
The Indonesian government is in the process of fulfilling its commitment to apply marine protected area (MPA) up to 20 million hectares by 2020.
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