Proceedings of the International Cyanide Detection Testing Workshop

gravely by fi shing communities. The fi nancial
and political crisis is not the only factor that
contributed to a decrease in export; reef
degradation caused by blast fi shing and
cyanide fi shing may also have contributed to
a decrease in export of aquarium fi sh from
Indonesia.
Action Plan Against Cyanide Fishing
The Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries
of the Republic of Indonesia (MMAF), in
collaboration with Telapak and other national
and international organizations have been
developing an action plan to abate cyanide
fi shing. The action plan includes the following
components:
Institutional Set Up and Capacity Building
MMAF is the National Management Authority
for fi sheries, coastal and marine affairs. Some
of the authorities related to coral reef and
protection of endangered species are now
being transferred from the previous authority,
the Ministry of Forestry, to MMAF. When the
transfer of authority is completed, MMAF
will have full authority and responsibility
to enforce CITES for coral reef organisms
and other aquatic species in the list. The
ornamental fi sh industry has so far been very
loosely regulated by MMAF. For instance, to
export ornamental fi sh the exporter will only
need two documents: a Health Certifi cate
issued by the Immigration and Customs
Agency, and an Export Notifi cation issued
by the Immigration and Customs Agency in
coordination with the Ministry of Trade. For
fi shes and coral reef species under CITES, it
was the Ministry of Forestry which had been
the agency to issue regulations and permits.
It is envisaged that a stronger MMAF will
be able to regulate ornamental fi sh and coral
reef exports as the National Management
Authority.
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The MMAF plans to establish Technical
Managements Unit at the regional level, and
MMAF will also explore the establishment
of district-level Technical Management Units
at districts that participate in COREMAP
Phase II. These units will be tasked with
implementation of regulations related to
fi sheries, coastal and marine affairs. Initially,
these units will be established at main fi sheries
centers, including Bali, Jakarta, Sorong, and
Manado. It is envisioned that Coral Detection
Testing Labs will be under these regional
Technical Management Units, and MMAF
will explore the possibility to contract out the
establishment and management of the labs
to NGOs or outside contractors. Under the
World Bank / ADB Coral Reef Rehabilitation
and Management Program Phase II, tools
and technologies for cyanide testing will be
explored.
The MMAF will soon have the capacity to
enforce law on fi sheries. The Directorate-
General of Surveillance and Control of
Marine Resources and Fisheries, MMAF
has authority to conduct investigation and
prosecution of violations of fi sheries- related
laws. The capacity development plan of this
Agency includes recruitment of personnel,
trainings, and procurement of equipment.
Trained staff of this Agency will have a the
right to bear arms.
Under the existing law, violations against
fi sheries related laws are to be prosecuted
at Fisheries Tribunal, which initially are
present in Jakarta, Medan in North Sumatra,
Pontianak in West Kalimantan, Bitung in
North Sulawesi, and Tual in Molucca.
Capacity building for MMAF to be
able to take on these new authority and
responsibilities will include strengthening of
human resources, both in terms of number
of personnel and quality of those personnels,