KUALA LUMPUR – Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail has invited Datuk Ahmad Marzuk Shaary (Pengkalan Chepa-PN) to his office for a full briefing on the government’s efforts to address issues of foreign fishermen encroachment.
This is after the PAS lawmaker questioned the lack of aggressiveness and commitment by those in power to resolve the longstanding issue.
“I invite you to my office…I can spend one hour giving a special briefing and providing additional information to show the government’s openness and readiness (in tackling the problem).
“This is if you are really interested to help resolve this issue involving foreign fishermen,” he said in the Dewan Rakyat when responding to questions from Marzuk.
Earlier, when replying to the PAS lawmaker’s original question on efforts to address the encroachments by Vietnamese fishermen in the South China Sea, Saifuddin had said the government has embarked on several operations involving various agencies.
Under Ops Naga, the minister said 280 Vietnamese fishermen boats have been seized and 3,240 crew members arrested. A separate operation involving the maritime agency sees 223 foreign fishermen boats seized and 2,264 crew members detained.
The arrests, he added, are made under the Immigration Act 1959/63 and Fisheries Act 1985.
In his supplementary question, Marzuk said the response given by Saifuddin was a “typical answer”.
“I feel the time has come for the government to work beyond the norm of enforcement and to instead focus on government-to-government efforts. We know where these fishermen come from.
“(On) the figures you provided, I’m sure it is only a measly portion, and that many more have escaped. Based on figures I obtained last year, there are about 8,000 foreign fishermen vessels operating illegally in Malaysia, and the estimated losses we incurred is about RM4 billion.”
In response, Saifuddin said his answer was to the original question posed by Marzuk, which only focuses on Vietnamese fishermen and crimes committed in the South China Sea.
“But are the government efforts limited to just that? Of course not.”
He added that in his recent meeting with his Thailand counterpart, they had discussed the issue of encroachment, which he acknowledged to be a critical issue that if unresolved, could lead to diplomatic tensions.
“The government is also aware that if we don’t act, this issue could lead to other crimes involving drugs, human trafficking, smuggling and environmental damage as a result of overfishing.
“All these are under the government’s radar,” he said, before extending his invitation to Marzuk. – The Vibes, February 15, 2023
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