A local patrol team seized 33 fishermen for fishing in protected marine waters in Raja Ampat. The fishermen were caught with shark fins and carcasses, manta rays and sea cucumbers valued at more than Rp1.5 billion (US$163,000).

The fishermen were picked up in the Kawe Marine Protected Area (MPA), an uninhabited 155,000-hectare area in northwest Raja Ampat. The area is protected by traditional, regency and national law. Fishing of any kind is illeg