REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, By: Soedibyo*)
After the release of ten Indonesian hostages comprise of sailors and workers by the Abu Sayayah group, based on the instruction of President Jokowi the Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi held a trilateral meeting, namely with the Foreign Minister of Malaysia and the Foreign Minister of the Philippines, in Yogyakarta . The meeting is intended to discuss the idea of President Jokowi to strengthen the existing Maritime Security Cooperation among those three countries with conducting the Navy Patrol to safe guard the sea lane for the trade cooperation and the civilian transportation ship among those three countries on the Sea of Sulu. Those three Foreign Ministers supported by their respective Armed Forces Commander agreed with the idea and now those three Armed Forces Commander are busy to deliberate the agreement into the detail Standard Operating Procedure concerns.
The Assessment :
The repressive action applying the military operation against the Hijackers to release a group of people detained as hostages by the hijacker is not easy one. The risk of victims of to die among the soldiers or the hostages could not be avoided. Accordingly it is likely President Jokowi is of the opinion that the military operation to prevent a group of workers of any ship to be hijacked and put as hostages by the hijacker is the better step taken by the governments concern. The State has enough and strong armed forces, but the State can do nothing to release its people who are detained as hostages by the hijacker. Attacking the hijackers stronghold is not easy one. The successful raid on Entebe in Uganda by the Israeli unit was only once and never to happen again. Also the Woyla raid by TNI in Bangkok in 1982 could not be easily repeated. The stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf is definitely and strongly defended. However President Jokowi is likely to think that the military capability of the countries concern could be united to cope with the threat of any hijacking through the preventive operation. Based on this analysis President Jokowi purposed the three countries of the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia to strengthen the existing maritime security cooperation among them to confront the hijacking on the Sea of Sulu.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and TNI Commander Gatot Nurmantyo, based on the President Jokowi instruction held a trilateral meeting with the Foreign Minister of Malaysia Sri Anifah Aman and the Panglima Tentera Diraja Malaysia and Foreign Minister of the Philippines Jose Rene Almendras and the Armed Forces Commander of the Philippines to discuss the idea to increase the Maritime Security Cooperation on the Sea of Sulu, located between Sabah, Palawan island, Tawi-Tawi, Sulu, Basilan and the Sea on the Southern part of the Philippines territory. Sulu is the former name of a Kingdom ruled the territory of Sabah, Tawi-tawi, Sulu, Jolo, Basilan and Palawan islands in the late 19 century.
The meeting was held in the Presidential Palace of Yogyakarta on May 5, 2016 presided by the briefing by President Jokowi and followed with a meeting to discuss the subject proposal. The meeting was conducted smoothly and the conclusion was stipulated in the Memo of Understanding (MoU) to implement the Maritime Security Cooperation to perform the security of the sea of Sulu, located on the North of Kalimantan up to the Sea on the Southern part of Mindanau.
There are four points of the important agreement reached in the meeting and stipulated in the Memo of Understanding, namely: first, the Foreign Ministers of Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia agreed to increase the application of the Maritime Security Cooperation with conducting the Navy patrol to secure the sea lane through the sea of Sulu. Second, the three countries agreed to organize a mechanism of faster support if any ship of any country needs help on the sea of Sulu. Third, the increasing of the Cooperation on the Exchange of Information on regional threat. Fourth, the establishment of hot-line connecting those three countries.
It is likely from now on the three Armed Forces Commander of Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines will deliberate the MoU into the detail of the Standard Operating Procedure of the technical operation. It is likely not much problem should be discussed because in fact now there are already the reference on the Patrol Agreement between the Armed Forces of Indonesia and Malaysia in the Straits of Malaka and the same agreement between the Armed Forces of Indonesia and the Philippines in the sea border North of Sulawesi and Mindanau and also the involvement of the Air Force to apply the tactical ground support to any ship getting trouble because of hijacking.
The hijacking of two Indonesian transportation ships by the Abu Sayyaf group on the Sea of Sulu close to Basilan was the background situation inspired the conduct of the trilateral meeting to discuss the idea to increase the existing Maritime Security Cooperation. However in the trilateral meeting the case of the hijacking against the two Indonesian ships with totally 14 Indonesian put as the hostages comprises of sailors and worker were not discussed specifically, though the exchange of information was conducted proportionally. The existence of the Abu Sayyaf group is purely the internal problem of the Philippines, so the trilateral meeting of those three Foreign Ministers is not intended to discuss the case.
Looking at the map the critical area subject to be discussed in the meeting is the Sea of Sulu that belongs to the Philippines territory so the sovereignty of the Sea of Sulu is fully under the Republic of the Philippines. And accordingly the Standard Operating Procedure on Maritime Security Cooperation on the Sea of Sulu is subject to be designed in line with the sovereignty of the Philippines. Tactically there are three types of Navy Patrol cooperation, namely the Coordinated Navy Patrol, the Joint Navy Patrol and the Combined Navy Patrol.
The simple design for this Maritime Security Cooperation is likely the Coordinated Navy Patrol, conducted independently but applying intensive communication. The important thing is the communication system used to establish the intensive operational communication among the three Naval Commands.
Realizing also that in case of possible hijacking may take place, the fast security help needed by the sailing ship, likely the ground support given by the Air Force tactical plane is the effective course of action, so it is accordingly the Standing Procedure of granting the fast Flight Clearance on the airspace of the Sea of Sulu by the Government of the Philippines should be designed.
Conclusion.
The hijacking activities of Abu Sayyaf group on the Sea of Sulu has made the Sea of Sulu as the vulnerable area for the commercial ship sailing from the South going to the North. The activities of Abu Sayyaf to hijack the commercial ship has created the Abu Sayyaf group as the regional threat in this part of the Pacific Ocean.
The cooperation on the Maritime Security Operation is actually not new for the Armed Forces of those three countries, because in fact those three Country now have had the Maritime Security Cooperation such as the agreement on the navy patrol supported with the tactical ground support by tactical airplane in the Straits of Malaka between Indonesia and Malaysia and the Agreement on the navy patrol between Indonesia and the Philippines in the sea border located between Mindanau and North Sulawesi.
The trilateral meeting among the Foreign Minister of Indonesia, the Foreign Minister of Malaysia and the Foreign Minister of the Philippines respectively followed by the Armed Forces Commander of their respective country had agreed that the Maritime Security Cooperation to save the transportation on the sea lane through the Sulu Sea is important to be strengthened. For this purpose the Armed Forces of the three countries will formulate the Standard Operating Procedure of the four points of security cooperation stipulated in the MoU. Since the political conflict in Mindanau would likely last for long time, the vulnerable situation of the Sea of Sulu also likely will last for a number of years to come.
*) A Security observer.
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