FOREIGN FISHERMEN DAMAGE BOAT ENGINE TO GET SYMPATHY

ONBOARD THE KAPAL MARIN BIJAK, SOUTH CHINA SEA, Sept 109 (Bernama) -- About
2am on Sept 9, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) detained three
Indonesian fishermen for trespassing the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in
Sarawak waters.

Having been caught red-handed for trespassing, the fishermen secretly poured
a type of liquid into the boat's engine compartment, damaging it in the process.

They then sought sympathy from the MMEA officers, claiming that they were
stranded in the EEZ for a couple of days as their engine was damaged.

Unknown to the Indonesians, the officers had come across such ploys in
previous encounters with foreign fishermen.

They detained the foreigners aged between 30 and 50, about 12 nautical miles
from Tanjung.

MMEA officers also seized three tonnes of fish from the fishing boat with
the 'faulty' machine.

Kuching maritime operations chief Roslan Othman said upon inspection, MMEA
officers found that the fishermen had used a type of liquid to deliberately
damage the engine to seek sympathy from them.

"At the same time, they claimed they had been stranded and not eaten for
a couple of days," he told reporters during 'Operasi Jerung Hitam', in
conjuction with Aidilfitri.

Roslan said, damaging the engine with liquid was a tactic commonly used by
Indonesian and Thai fishermen to get MMEA to lend a sympathetic ear to their
problems and set them free.

-- BERNAMA