RI to develop outermost islands to boost presence

Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 01/11/2012 9:56 AM A | A | A | - Klipping The Jakarta Post

The government has plans to develop the 12 outermost inhabited islands, which it says have abundant but as yet undeveloped natural resources, a Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry official says.

The ministry’s director general for marine, coastal areas and small islands, Sudirman Saad, said infrastructure projects were among the government’s top priorities in developing the outermost islands of the archipelago.

“Small remote islands generally lag behind [major islands in terms of development],” he said on Monday as quoted by Antara on the sidelines of a signing ceremony in Jakarta.

At the ceremony, the ministry and South Sulawesi-based Hasanuddin University agreed to jointly develop Sebatik Island in Nunukan regency, East Kalimantan. The island is divided into Malaysian and Indonesian territories.

Sudirman said it needed comprehensive and integrated cooperation between the ministry and universities to develop inhabited remote islands, especially those bordering neighboring countries.

According to Sudirman 31 of the 92 outermost islands in Indonesia are inhabited.

The 12 islands that the ministry plans to develop this year are Sebatik, Nusakambangan (Central Java), Miangas (Talaud Islands regency, North Sulawesi), Marore (Sangihe Islands regency, North Sulawesi), Marampit (Talaud Islands regency, North Sulawesi), Lingayan (Tolitoli regency, Central Sulawesi), Maratua (Berau regency, East Kalimantan), Wetar (Southwest Maluku regency, Maluku), Alor (Alor regency, East Nusa Tenggara), Enggano (North Bengkulu regency, Bengkulu), Simuk (Nias Islands regency, North Sumatra) and Subi Kecil (Natuna Islands regency, Riau Islands).

Sudirman said he expected the government to have developed all of the 92 outermost islands by 2014.

University of Indonesia international relations expert Makmur Keliat said development on remote islands was essential to maintain the country’s sovereignty, and the government could maintain “effective occupation” only through administrative affairs carried out on the islands.

“One of the international principles of sovereignty law is that a country’s sovereignty will be effective only when administration runs on a day-to-day basis,” he said.

The outermost islands, he said, were also the point at which the country could measure how far its exclusive economic zone extended.

However, it would be hard for the central government to rely on local administrations to run its development programs on remote islands because it would not be politically expedient for local regional heads seeking votes, said Makmur.

“We cannot expect much from regional heads in developing those islands. What is considered strategic in national defense terms is not necessarily strategic in local politics terms.”

Echo-ing Makmur, University of Indonesia international law expert Hikmahanto Juwana said effective control of the outermost islands by the government would prevent the country from losing sovereignty over them.

Indonesia lost Sipadan and Ligitan Islands to Malaysia on Dec. 17, 2002, at the International Court of Justice. This led to nationwide popular disappointment and criticism of the government.