New Regulation on Fish Quarantine Installations

Indonesia, as a WTO member, is party to the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (“SPS Agreement”), where, under Article 5 (2) of the SPS Agreement, it is permissible to take the appropriate level of action for the protection of human, animal, and plant health. Since diseases and/or hazardous substances can be carried by fish, with the potential to result in health issues for humans and other animals, there is a need for quarantine procedures to be in place.

Fish are quarantined when entering Indonesian territory in accordance with the SPS agreement, with such a technical barrier being justified under the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade–WTO, due to the quarantine being for the purpose of public health. Government Regulation No. 15 of 2002 on Fish Quarantine (Government Regulation) is part of the legal framework that implements the SPS Agreement.

Pursuant to Articles 63 (3) and 64 (2) of the Government Regulation, it is stipulated that further implementation of matters concerning fish quarantine installations will be by means of a ministerial decision or regulation.

Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Regulation No. Per.11/Men/2011 on Fish Quarantine Installations (“Regulation”) was issued to serve as a mechanism to govern fish quarantine installations (Article 2). Quarantine installations, pursuant to Article 1 (2), are responsible for preventing the spread of pests and diseases via fish being brought in from abroad, or from one area to another within Indonesia, and their spread to outside Indonesia.

Under Article 3, quarantine installations are classified as:

Pursuant to Article 5 in conjunction with Article 6, the government or a private entity can establish a fish quarantine installation. Places designated for the establishment of quarantine installation by the government are stipulated in Article 4, and comprise of places of where fish are typically brought in.

For private quarantine installations, establishing an installation is possible if the conditions enumerated in Article 6 (2) are present. Such as the government being unable to establish the installation and the private person/entity is capable of establishing it themselves.  

Requirements

Article 7 lists the facilities of which a government Installation must be comprised, and Article 8 stipulates the requirements for private owned installations, which, amongst others, are:

Determination of a quarantine installation

Upon fulfilling the technical requirements, private installation owners can secure a determination of acknowledgement as a quarantine installation, pursuant to Article 14 (1), following the submission by the private owner to the agency in charge of fish quarantine, quality control, and health security of fishery products the documents listed in Article 14 (2):

Pursuant to Article 15, a determination regarding a fish quarantine installation is in the form specified in the Appendix, and includes:

Report

Pursuant to Article 21, a monthly report is required for privately owned installations that have secured a determination. The report consists of the quantity and substance origin of the fish/other substances that have been brought into the installation, the quarantine action being conducted, and the results of quarantine.  

Sanctions

Sanctions are set out in Articles 22 through 26. With administrative sanctions, as stipulated in Article 23 (2), comprising of:

The Regulation repeals and replaces Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Regulation No. PER.27/MEN/2008 on the same subject matter.

The Regulation has been in force since 16 March 2011.