At a meeting in Tua Pejet on Wednesday 11th of June,  the Mentawai Government again warned illegal boat operators to comply for the good of the Mentawai community. The story was featured in the respected Singalang Newspaper yesterday.

THE UNWAVERING REGIONAL GOVERNMENT OF MENTAWAI DISTRICT

HUNTING DOWN ILLEGAL SURF-CHARTER BOATS


TUA PEJAT – Resoluteness is the only choice when freedom gets out of hand. There will be no excuse whatsoever this time, patrol on surf charter boats must be carried out on the forthcoming July 15.

“We have assembled a task force to chase down illegal surf-charter boats, those who operate without permits,” affirmed Edison Saleleubaja, Head of Mentawai District [Indonesian, “Bupati”], in front of West Sumatran Boat-Charter Association members [AKSSB], on Wednesday, June 11, in Tua Pejat.

As the District Head, Edison is serious….. the task force, involving several government agencies, including the Police Department, is ready to be deployed.

“We do not want surf operators to merely scoop out profits. We would like them to build land-based facilities [resort] as well. After all these years, visitors have come, surfed, slept and ate their meals on board, and they left. The people of Mentawai can only assume the role of spectators, because the tourists are reluctant to come ashore. To make matter worse, some surf operators spread propaganda on issues of malaria and contagious diseases, whereas statistic of malaria infection demonstrated a drastic decrease since the collaboration between the regional government and a foreign NGO, SurfAid International. So, what other excuses do you plan to come up with against building these resorts? At present, there are eight resorts,” explained Edison, in response to a question from AKSSB Chairman, Balinese Ketut Wirdayasa, SE.

Initially, Ketut requested a possibility that AKSSB be permitted to concentrate on surf charter business only, without the imposed obligation of building resorts.

“I hope the government would revise the Regional Regulation [Perda] No. 16/2002. In my view, such regulation is another form of monopoly by a group of companies,” said Ketut. Earlier, Ketut also mentioned that the organizational structure of AKSSB comprised of some prominent figures in West Sumatra, such as the Governor, Head of Provincial Police Department [Kapolda], Head of Attorney General Office [Kajati], Navy Commander [Danlantamal II Teluk Bayur], Military Resort Commander [Danrem 032 Wirabraja], etc.

But, Head of Mentawai District disagreed with the statement made by Ketut.

Regional regulation was put in place to regulate a chaotic situation. Edison explained, “This is no monopoly. Chronologically, the birth of this particular regulation is inseparable with the objective that the fame of Mentawai tourism resources should not only benefit a small group of tour operators. Ideally, such wealth is supposed to create permanent benefits and improve the local people’s economy.”

Reinforcing these views, Drs. Tarminta, the Head of Regional Board of Planning & Development [BAPPEDA], confirmed that regional regulation is prepared according to the existing legislative hierarchy. “The regulation in question does not imply any form of monopoly. It simply regulates and manages tourism capacity. Accusation of monopolistic [practice] probably surfaced because of business competition among tour operators,” expressed Tarminta.

Head of Mentawai District asserted, in order to prevent any false impression toward the Regional Government efforts, it is advisable that profits generated from tourism should be fairly distributed among the people of Mentawai.

Mentawai Marine Tourism Association [MMTA] exists & operates upon the recommendation of the Regional Government of Mentawai District, with the objective of facilitating supervision. In addition, the inception of this association closely relates to the reality that, up until now, the Mentawais merely functioned as a “parking lot” for surf-charter boats. The fleet arrive at the breaks, surfers enjoy the barrels, sleep and have their meals on board, did not bother to go ashore, and then they go home.

“The boats just leave. You do not witness investments taking place. All they leave behind is destruction of our coral reefs, resulting from anchoring. Dear audience, if only you’d build resorts, imagine how many people you could help, thousands of them. Farmers would be able to sell their crops to you, handicraft traders would feel encouraged to improve their products, and, obviously, you would could bring in many other positive effects,” the District Head suggested.

Therefore, there is nothing wrong with the governments decision to exercise restrictions to avoid a policy of openness that becomes stark nakedness. “It is okay to adopt a policy of openness, as long as it does not strip you naked.” This expression came from the Head of Mentawai’s Regional Assembly [DPRD], Kortanius Sabeleakek.

He voiced his concern, “We maybe collectively agree, that there are several other regional regulations that are no longer compatible with the current conditions. However, we all must realize that this particular regulation [Perda No16 2002] was stipulated based on certain conditions at a given time. I agree, with an evaluation [of the regulation], but restriction on capacity should remain. If we do not exercise control, everyone will come and crowd the breaks. This will be uncomfortable for the other tourists. It may be okay for us to be open but not to be naked. We are talking about locations with limited capacity. There is no way that we are going to open the locations one hundred percent, and then run the risk of spoiling the enjoyment that tourists could have otherwise enjoyed. Therefore, we need to regulate the intensity of surfing activities.

Kortanius added, “The problem we are encountering right now is that there are too many charter boats and the situation gets out of control. In addition, I ask MMTA to set up an office here, in Tua Pejat, which will create effects for community members. If the association administers its activities from this location, we can perform better coordination.

Head of Regional Tourism Office in Mentawai, Drs. Zulkarnain, stated that, at present, there were approximately 52 charter boats serving the tourism activities in Mentawai. 30 boats, out of 52, are affiliated with Mentawai Marine Tourism Association [MMTA], while the other 22 boats are members  of AKSSB.

“We hope these two associations would cooperate together in improving the prosperity of Mentawai people,” remarked Zulkarnain, in the midst of the event that was also attended by Acting Officer for Mentawai District Secretary [Plt. Sekdakab Kep. Mentawai], Drs. Kurnia Sakarebau.

AKSSB Chairman, Ketut Wirdayasa, S.E, ruled out the suggestion that the members of his association should join MMTA. According to Ketut, MMTA indicated that AKSSB members who wished to join with MMTA should sign an agreement stating their consent to pay 6 percent of the gross income to MMTA every month. “That particular requirement makes it difficult for us to comply. I wouldn’t mind paying a contribution or subscription fee,” added Ketut.

The dialogue became heated when AKSSB members tried to calculate their profits.

Edison, the Head of Mentawai District concluded, “I will only ask all of you, tour operators, to be honest & open. Please be honest & open. Let’s try to share with the people of Mentawai. Let’s make our lives more meaningful for the greater good. To facilitate further clarification, I request your presence, all of you, at the forthcoming meeting, scheduled on July 2nd. Let’s turn this meeting into a forum where we can work out a solution to our problems.”