15 February 2017 MANADO, INDONESIA —The Philippine Consulate General in Manado repatriated 65 Filipino fishermen and is scheduled to repatriate two more batches composed of 71 Filipino fishermen apprehended by maritime enforcement agencies in Bitung for alleged illegal fishing activities.

Last year, the Consulate General repatriated a total of 689 Filipino fishermen for the same reason.

The Indonesian government is intent in strictly implementing its anti-illegal fishing policy following President Joko Widodo’s creation of the Anti-Illegal Fishing Task Force (SATGAS 115) on October 21, 2015 with the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry as Chair. 

The repatriations conducted by the Consulate General are made possible through the assistance of the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Philippine Embassy in Jakarta, the DFA Regional Consular Offices in General Santos City and Davao City, the Indonesian maritime enforcement agencies, and the Indonesian immigration offices.