1. The LRFF trade in Indonesia involves catching live reef fish and trading them through networks until they reach consumers in Hong Kong. 2. Fishing networks are based on patron-client relationships where patrons provide boats, gear and loans to fishermen. Trade networks involve collectors, exporters and importers. 3. The COREMAP project aims to promote sustainable fishing through community-based marine protected areas and alternative livelihoods, but faces challenges of overfishing, debt, and lack of community participation.

1. Examining conservation and development
live reef food fish (LRFF) trade in Indonesia
SeaWeb 10th International Seafood Summit, Hong Kong 6-8 September 2012
Irendra Radjawali
Faculty of Social Sciences, Bremen University, Germany
Institute of Oriental and Asian Studies, Bonn University,
Germany
Enlightening Indonesia, Makassar, Indonesia
radja@hotmail.com

2. LRFF trade: Facts and
figures
• Live reef food fish (LRFF) is the term used for fish that are kept alive until
cooking in order to preserve their freshness.
HK imports 13,000 tons in Worth US$ 350 M Koeshendrajana 2006,
2002 (official data) Sadovy 2003
Total Hk Imports might US$ 450-500 M Muldoon and Scott 2005,
reach 18,000 tons/year Sadovy 2003
(+unreported)
Global trade reaches 30,000 US$810M – US$1 B
tons (HK accounted for 60%)
Source: California Environmental Associate, 2011

3. LRFF trade: “roving bandit”
Scales et.al. (2006)

4. LRFF trade: “the trade
networks”
Geoffrey Muldoon / WWF
Source: Bentley 1997

5. LRFF fishing and trade in Spermonde Archipelago, South Sulawesi, Indonesia
150 islands with fringing reefs as well as a large number of
barrier and submerged patch reefs

6. LRFF fishing and
trade ...constitute a new and unique type
LRFF fishing and trade is
the process of catching the of tropical marine commodity
fish from the sea and trading because it hinges on the fish’s
them through different biophysical forms and their
middle men until they reach corresponding need to be constantly
Source: www.fishbase.org
the end consumer immersed in clean, cool, oxygen-rich
seawater to survive. .. Highfinned grouper / Cromileptes altivelis
IUCN Redlist: Vulnerable
Local name Indonesian English Latin
Napoleon Napoleon Napoleon wrasse, humphead wrasse Cheilinus undulatus
Sunu tikus Kerapu tikus Polkadot grouper, highfinned Cromileptes altivelis
grouper, barramundi cod
Sunu merah Kerapu merah / sunu merah Coral trout, leopard grouper Plectropomus leopardus
Sunu merah Sunu pappa Polkadot cod Plectropomus areolatus
Sunu merah Kerapu merah / sunu merah Violet coral trout Plectropomus pessuliferus
Sunu kwaci Sunu kwaci Red-flushed cod Aethaloperca logaa
Sunu macan / Sunu macan Tiger grouper Epinephelus fuscoguttatus
kerapu lumpur
Sunu bone Sunu bone Spotted coral trout Plectropomus maculatus
Source: www.fishbase.org
Napoleon Wrasse / Cheilinus undulatus
IUCN Redlist : Endangered

7. Fish distribution networks and its economic
value
2 hours flight
Hong Kong Ponds in Jakarta or Bali
6 hours flight
Sizing rules
Baby (<0.6 kg) Super (0.6-1 kg) Up (>1.2 kg) Price in HK
Highfinned grouper 7.85 USD 23 USD 36.6 USD 250 USD
Spotted coral trout 3.66 USD 6.27 USD 7.85 USD 100-150 USD
Napoleon wrasse 36.6 USD 300 USD

8. LRFF networks
Prosecution insurance network
1 2 3 4
Makassar collector / boss
5 6 7 8 9 10
Island collector / patron
JKT/Bali exporter HK importer HK retailer/restaurant
11
Trade network
13 12 14
Fishermen
Fishing network
To what extent networks (social) play role in LRFF fishing and trade?

9. Fishing networks
• Who
– Patron and clients(locally known as punggawa and sawi)
“The patron-client relationship can be characterized generally as an unequal (but theoretically
non-binding) relationship between a superior (that is, a patron or leader) and a number of
inferiors (that is, clients, retainers, or followers), based on an asymmetric exchange of services,
where the de facto dependence on the patron of the clients, whose unpaid services may include
economic obligations, paid or unpaid work, armed service, political support and other services, is
counterbalanced by the role the patron plays as a leading figure for all the clients and by the
assistance, incuding the monetary loans and protection, he or she provides when necessary”
(Pelras, 2000).
“When the patronage relationship is not primarily set in a political context, but is primarily
economic in character, the terms used in South Sulawesi are punggawa for the patron and sawi
for the client” Type of support Value
• How Boat and machine IDR 7,000,000 (US$ 700)
– Debt (anywhere between 3M-20M Rp.
Nylon IDR 4,000 (US$ 0.4)
/ USD 300 – USD 2,000 per year)
– Influenced by the monsoon climate Gloves IDR 3,000 (US$ 0.3)
– Sizing rules Tymbal IDR 3,000 (US$ 0.3)
– Beliefs: as long as there are leafs on the
Hook (1 box) IDR 15,000 (US$ 1.5)
leafs on the trees, fish are always available
Wire IDR 20,000 (US$ 2)
Small buoy IDR 5,000 (US$ 0.5)
Petrol, food, coffee, IDR 50,000 (US$ 5)
cigarettes (daily basis)

10. Trade networks
• Who
– Patron (island), boss (Makassar), exporter ( Jakarta / Bali),
Importer (HK)
• How
– Various strategies to minimize the risks: (1) to keep the fish in the
pond as short as possible, (2) to treat fish with different biological
and chemical treatments, (3) special packaging treatment for fish
transportation.
– Credit (Debt) anywhere between 40M-150M rupiahs (4,000 –
15,000 USD) per year (boss and patron)
– Sizing rules

11. Catching the fish
Sodium cyanide/
potassium cyanide
Sodium Nifrustyrenate terramicyn
Keeping the fish ‘healthy and fresh’ Anesthetizing the fish
Ready to transport

12. Prosecution insurance networks
• Who
– Patrons, bosses, and some government officials (incl. Navy and
Police)
• How
– Regular bribing We give the commander of the police between IDR 1 million
and IDR 2 million [between USD 100and USD 200] per month
and give IDR 50,000 [approximately USD 5] to each officer
who comes to our place. There are usually two or three officers
who come to collect money.) (Interview #3 and #4 in
Makassar, May 10 and May 18-21, 2010
Prosecution Insurance Body Amount
Water police IDR 50,000 - IDR 100,000 (US$ 5 – US$ 10) per person per visit.
Commandant of water police IDR 1,000,000– IDR 2,000,000 (US$ 100 – US$ 200) per month.
Navy IDR 50,000 (US$ 5) per person per visit
Commandant of Navy IDR 1,000,000– IDR 2,000,000 (US$ 100 – US$ 200) per month.

13. Conservation and Development initiative: COREMAP
• COREMAP (Coral reef rehabilitation and management project) a 15-year project funded by
several sources through loans and grants.
• USD 96.27 million
• Protect, rehabilitate and achieve the sustainable use of coral reefs and their associated
ecosystems in Indonesia, which is in turn expected to enhance the welfare of coastal
communities (IUCN, 2002).
• Develop a viable coral reef management system in Indonesia in order to place the community
at the center of coral reef management (IUCN, 2002).
6 years in prison / payment
of 120,000 USD

14. What’s the
problem ?
• Overfishing
– Non-resilience
– Massive depletion [Napoleon wrasse]
• Cyanide fishing : impact to the coral reefs
• LRFF – Protogynous hermaphrodite (changing sex from female to male)
• Targetting sexually mature female – looking for ‘super’ size
• Debt and credit structure – cyanide fishing
• Absence of alternative livelihood – cyanide fishing
• Transparency – bribing / rent-seeking
• Health issues of consumers ?

15. COREMAP
• Community Based – Marine Protected Areas (CB-MPA)
• Decentralize political power
• More attention on community-based approaches – effectively protect marine
areas and abate declining fish catches
• Target: 1 No Take Area (NTA) per village
• Micro credit for the island communities [1M Rp. / 100 US$ per month, 20% of
interest]

16. COREMAP – on the ground
• 53% of the communities were not familiar with NTA’s establishment
• NTA markers/buoy were gone / sunk in 2009 (established in 2007)
• CB-MPA illustrates that it is perceived as good but it is not an effective
program.
• CB-MPA is also perceived as a program which only benefit the ‘elites’ who are
not the residents of the islands and not directly affected by the program.
• Elite capture
CB- MPA is a good idea, for it provides space for
fish nests; however, fishermen keep on going to
that area (the no take areas) when the person
seen as influential was absent. Even a patron
practiced blast-fishing there...
The money from COREMAP is just for the
family close to COREMAP but not for others. It
is also just for people who have money
already ...

17. Multi-level
Challenges
• At consumers’ side
– Focus on health issues ?
• At middlemen
– Rent-seeking and corruption – Transparency!
– Credit networks
• At suppliers’ side
– Rapid exploitation , new fishing grounds
– Cyanide fishing
– Overlapping dimensions [social, economic, politics]
– Room for maneouvre [ bosses and patrons invest in other sectors]
– Absence of alternative livelihood
– Debt networks

18. Promoting Sustainability
Is it possible ?
YES

19. Some ideas for conservation and development –
Let’s discuss together
• Awareness of (and deal with?) socio-economic and socio-political
dynamics – ‘real’ community participation and involvement
• Dealing with corruption ?
• Different multi-level approaches [consumers, middlemen, suppliers]
• Integrated
• Science supported [better monitoring and database on fish stocks,
decision supporting system]
• Continuing and long-term
• Trade monitoring – involve middlemen
• Governance and goverment

20. Inputs from the scientists: Network Analysis – centrality measures of
fishing networks
1. Who is the ‘central’ person to establish effective conservation?
2. Who is the ‘central’ person in the debt networks?
3. Who is the ‘central’ person in influencing directly the fishermen?

21. Scientists at work : Reef
Game
Identifying fish
Mapping and gamming

22. Acknowledgement
• Prof. Dr. Michael Flitner
• Dr.habil.Marion Glaser
• Mr. Muhammad Neil
• Dr. Rio Deswandi
• Dr. Dewi Yanuarita
• Dr. Geoffrey Muldoon
• Prof. Yvonne Sadovy
• Leibniz Center for Tropical Marine Ecology – Bremen
• Fellow researchers: Andi Suncoko, Hafez, Narto, Umar, Yuli, Gunardi, Enab, Edhy, Shidik,
Abenk, Rega
• SPICE Project
• Leibniz Center for Tropical Marine Ecology, Bremen

23. 谢谢 , Thank you, Terimakasih,
Danke
Things should be made as simple as possible but not simpler - Albert
Einstein
The goal of science is to make the wonderful and complex understandable and
simple, but not less wonderful - Herb Simon, Science of the
Artificial
This is not about‘fear’ , there’s HOPE and we need to ACT together
NOW