Page 54 - e-KLIPING KETENAGAKERJAAN 28 AGUSTUS 2020

The sailors said they had worked on the ship for 10 months and had yet to receive any payment.

“Our contract ends in November 2021, but we can’t wait that long. We could die here,” one of
the men said.

“Please help us, Pak,” they said multiple times.

The video, first posted by Instagram account @infogeh, has been shared numerous times and
has garnered hundreds of comments, mostly condemning the apparent abuse and similar
incidents aboard other Chinese fishing vessels.

The Foreign Ministry said it had received a report and was looking into the matter.

“[We] have coordinated with the Transportation Ministry and the Manpower Ministry, which
issues permits for Indonesians to work as crew members on ships abroad,” Foreign Ministry
director for the protection of citizens and legal entities overseas Judha Nugraha said in a
statement on Wednesday.

Judha said the ministry had not received any response from PT Raja Crew Atlantik (RCA), the
recruiting agency mentioned in the caption of the viral video.

According to data from the International Maritime Organization (IMO), Liao Yuan Yu 103, the
fishing vessel mentioned in the post, is owned by Liaoning Kimliner Ocean Fishing Co. Ltd. in
Dalian city, China. Judha said the Foreign Ministry had coordinated with the Indonesian Embassy
in Beijing to seek confirmation from the fishing vessel’s owner and Chinese authorities.

“We will keep trying to call the first party that uploaded the video on social media to get more
detailed information,” he said.

The incident is the latest in a series of cases of alleged abuse aboard Chinese fishing vessels. In
July, an Indonesian crew member was found dead in the freezer of vessel Lu Huang Yuan Yu
117. In May, a video appeared on Facebook showing a group of sailors on Lu Qing Yuan Yu 623
throwing the body of an Indonesian sailor into the sea. Prior to that, there was public outrage at
the death of four Indonesian sailors registered to another Chinese fishing ship.

According to Destructive Fishing Watch (DFW) data, at least 30 Indonesian crew members were
victims of exploitation aboard Chinese fishing vessels between November 2019 and June 2020,
seven of whom have died and three of whom are missing

Our contract ends in November 2021, but we can’t wait that long. We could die here.

Foto Caption:

Loud and clear: Activists from the Indonesian Migrant Workers Union and Greenpeace Indonesia
stage a protest in front of the State Palace on Thursday to demand the President immediately
ratify a draft regulation on the protection of Indonesian ship crew.

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