By: I Made Dharma Jaya Ariawan (Alor-Flores East Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) Coordinator, WWF-Indonesia)

For more than a month, the people of Pante Deere Village, Kabola Sub-district, Alor, have been troubled by the installation of nets in their waters by fishermen from outside the village.

The 50-meter-long net made of nylon rope and large mesh was installed parallel to the shoreline and never lifted by the net owner. The net was set on top of the coral reef so that it wrapped around the existing coral structure.

"We do not know the purpose of installing the net, we are worried that the dugong that we are proud of is entangled in the net," said Noh Jahatang, one of the fishermen leaders of Pante Deere Village. The waters of Pante Deere are indeed a habitat for seagrass beds, home and food for dugongs (Dugong dugon) located in Mali Waters, not far from Pante Deere.

Several locations in the waters of Pante Deere are included in the core zone of the Pantar Strait and Surrounding Seas Marine Nature Reserve (SAP), which was established in 2015. The high coral reef cover is home to a variety of fish species, including sharks and rays. In addition, the long contours of the lagoon are where the community cultivates seaweed. The white sandy beach of Pante Deere has also become a tourist destination that is starting to be built.

The case of this net was reported to the Alor Regency Marine and Fisheries Office. The Alor Regency DKP also collaborated with the NTT Provincial DKP, the Directorate of Water and Air Police (Ditpolairud) of Alor Police, the Navy, and the National SAR Agency (Basarnas) Alor; decided to remove the net from the coast of Pante Deere that day (13/1/18).

The case of the no-man's net is not the only threat to the sustainability of Pante Deere's marine and coastal ecosystems. In discussions facilitated by WWF-Indonesia, villagers still reported fishing with explosives and potassium, trawling, and marine sand mining.

Therefore, the village government did not remain silent. Accompanied by DKP Alor Regency and WWF-Indonesia, that day (13/01), starting the lifting of nets from the waters of Pante Deere, the Community Supervisory Group (Pokmaswas) Cinta Lingkungan was formed.

To strengthen the coastal area security system, the village head also initiated the formation of village regulations (Perdes) related to the protection of the coastal area of Pante Deere Village. The head of the Alor Police Ditpolair Unit came directly to provide direction and commitment to joint supervision of water areas, especially the coast of Pante Deere.

"We strongly support the formation of this Pokmaswas, hopefully we can work together in overcoming the threat of security and order in the waters," said Rasyid Blegur, Head of the Alor Police Polair Unit. "Take note of my cellphone number, if there is a violation report it to me directly," he said later, which was greeted with enthusiasm by the villagers.

Apart from the Alor Police Satpol Air, support and invitations to partner also came from the Navy and Basarnas to overcome security problems and emergencies in the waters, considering that Alor waters are one of the frontiers of the Republic of Indonesia.

Pokmaswas Cinta Lingkungan hopes that in the future this partnership can be well established, so that threats to the coastal potential of Pante Deere can be reduced.