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| BINTULU: The Defence Ministry has
been urged to increase Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) vessels to patrol Sarawak
waters that had lately came under crisis situation following alleged violations
of chartered foreign fishing boats.
Bintulu Member of Parliament, Dato' Seri Tiong King Sing said he had personally submitted a request to the Deputy Minister of Defence, Datuk Seri Zainal Abidin Zin at the sideline of the current parliament session. He made these remarks in view of the growing concerns among local fishermen in the State whom had accused Thai fishermen on board chartered vessels of carrying firearms and fishing beyond the area stipulated in their licences. The request for reinforcement was suggested as he felt the patrolling strength of the other enforcement agencies alone were insufficient to oversee such a massive area effectively. This was evident when he noted that the Marine Police as well as the Marine Fisheries Department had done to their best capabilities to curb illegal fishing in the Malaysian's Economic Exclusive Zone (EEZ) off the State's coast. Most recently was the success of the Marine Police based here to intercept nine Vietnamese fishing boats and 116 people on board after they were found fishing illegally in Sarawak waters. Despite the success, he added that the scenario of present concern now reflected the needs for enforcement to be stepped up to ensure that the fishermen's livelihood remained protected. Aside from the government agencies' efforts, Tiong who is also the Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) Liaision Chief for Central Region called on the local fishermen to come up with suggestions that could improve their present situation. "As it is your fishing ground, you should know better than other people of any other way that the government could assist to help you to maintain your livelihood," he told the local fishermen. |