Indonesia Ocean Justice Initiative tackles human rights at sea

Founders of the Indonesia Ocean Justice Initiative (IOJI) met with college students, college and different members of the Stanford neighborhood on Tuesday to share the progress of their ongoing partnership with Stanford to help sustainable fishing practices in Indonesia. The occasion, “Towards Socially and Environmentally Sustainable Oceans: A Dialogue with the Indonesia Ocean Justice Initiative,” was held at Encina Corridor and sponsored by the Stanford Heart for Ocean Options (COS) and Heart for Human Rights and Worldwide Justice. 

Fadilla Octaviani, the director of enforcement help and entry to justice at IOJI, and Stephanie Juwana, the director of worldwide engagement and coverage reform at IOJI, spoke with Liz Selig, deputy director of COS, and David Cohen, college co-director of the Heart for Human Rights and Worldwide Justice, in a dialog moderated by Jessie Brunner, director of human trafficking analysis on the Heart for Human Rights and Worldwide Justice. 

Based on its web site, IOJI is a suppose tank and coverage advocacy group centered on supporting sustainable and equitable ocean governance. Octaviani mentioned that the group’s essential aims are to help sustainable ocean governance; advocate for sustainable and equitable ocean insurance policies; strengthen the connection between authorities, academia and civil societies concerned in ocean governance; and empower small-scale fisheries and marginalized individuals who rely upon the ocean to outlive in Indonesia.

“We want the ocean,” the IOJI slideshow learn. Based on Juwana, the ocean is the principle supply of protein for greater than 60 % of Indonesians, a supply of livelihood for five million fishers, an answer to local weather change, a system for catastrophe threat administration and a major technique of nationwide revenue. Juwana mentioned the ocean-related challenges Indonesia faces embody unlawful fishing, human trafficking, medicine on fishing fleets, oil spills and plastic air pollution.

Based on Octaviani, IOJI focuses its efforts on human rights for Indonesians at sea. She mentioned that 1.2 million Indonesians work as migrant crew members on overseas industrial vessels and fishing vessels, and IOJI makes use of analysis and coverage proposals to help the federal government in creating laws to make sure extra equitable and environmental ocean governance. 

“When you have adopted a few of the points regarding human rights on vessels, it’s very unhappy,” Octaviani mentioned. Octaviani shared a photograph of an Indonesian migrant employee whom she mentioned was disposed to the ocean from a Chinese language vessel with out approval from their household after they died.

“Indonesian migrant fishers are very weak to trafficking and compelled labor, which is why the Heart for Ocean Options, Heart for Human Rights and IOJI made this venture,” Octaviani added.

After Octaviani and Juwana offered their work on the IOJI, the COS and Heart for Human Rights and Worldwide Justice audio system joined the dialog to share why the facilities grew to become concerned with the IOJI.

“COS likes to say that we work from perception to affect and to do this it’s a must to have the appropriate companions,” mentioned Selig. “One of many issues that was actually thrilling about this venture is that it allowed us to develop our horizons past the environmental sustainability work that we historically do into this house the place environmental and social sustainability meet.”

The partnership between COS, the Heart for Human Rights and Worldwide Justice and IOJI was prompted after a 2017 joint-research effort between COS and the Worldwide Seafood Sustainability Basis (ISSF), which recognized contracts and funds as the most typical supply of labor abuse for the tuna provide chain. The facilities labored with IOJI to sort out labor contracts and funds for Indonesian mariners, which is the mission of IOJI. 

The venture’s purpose is “to finish trendy slavery in its provide chains as a part of its commitments within the Tuna Traceability Declaration,” mentioned Natalie Longmire-Kulis ’22, one of many occasion organizers. The Tuna Traceability Declaration is a legally non-binding dedication to finish overfishing and unlawful, unreported and unregulated (IUU) tuna fishing and create administration plans to convey again fish shares.

The occasion is a part of Ocean Imaginaries, a brand new initiative below the Stanford World Research program which makes use of the ocean as a system to advertise worldwide interdisciplinary analysis. 

The Ocean Imaginaries program organizes reveals, occasions and lessons for Stanford to work together extra with ongoing challenges in our oceans. This system is specializing in the Indian Ocean for the 2022-2023 educational yr.

“Indonesia is exclusive within the skill of civil society organizations to interface with the federal government in ways in which [have] a direct affect,” Cohen mentioned. “IOJI is a main instance of that in how they’ve developed ongoing partnerships with vital authorities businesses.” 

“After practically working collectively for 3 years, we lastly are in a position to meet with everybody in individual,” Octaviani mentioned. “We hope that our presentation will present everybody with a deeper data of Indonesia and would possibly encourage somebody in pursuing a profession on this discipline.”