The night is still dark and too cold to move, but not Usman Kader (39), a fisherman in Gale-Gale Village, West Seram Utara Sub-district, Central Maluku Regency. In the third third of the night, he is already heading to the coast, preparing all the equipment to catch fish. For 16 years, Usman has been a fisherman, he has used several types of fishing gear, such as hand line, drift gill net and bottom gill net. Since 2014, Usman has been actively fishing using a bottom gill net with a compressor. Since then, Usman often catches protected marine animals such as hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata), and bahar root (Anthiphates spp).

Lack of knowledge and awareness of protected animals such as marine mammals (dugong, dolphins, whales), sea turtles, manta rays, sharks and bahar root has led Usman and other fishermen to still catch these protected animals. Legally, the full protection status for all sea turtle species is stated in Law No. 5 of 1990, P.106 MenLHK 2019, and SE MEN KP No. 526 of 2015. Sea turtles are one of the protected marine animals based on both national and international laws, and their existence is threatened by extinction due to natural factors and human activities.

July 2018, Usman participated in an activity organized by WWF-Indonesia as an implementing partner of the USAID SEA Project, namely the Public Consultation Activity for the Establishment of Prospective Coastal and Small Island Conservation Areas (KKP3K) of North Seram and West North Seram (Serutbar) in Masohi, Central Maluku. Usman strongly opposed the establishment of this MPA. This opposition is because the waters of Pulau Tujuh, which are included in the MPA area, are the location where Gale-Gale Village fishermen depend on to fish and to support their families.

"If this area has been turned into a conservation area, where else should we go fishing. The government says we must preserve the fish for future generations, so what about the life of the katong for now. As an old man who fishes now, so that in the next 10 or 20 years, our children will no longer fish like us," Usman said when expressing his reasons for opposing the MPA.

Usman began to realize the violations he had committed after attending a socialization activity on Combating Destructive Fishing on Isau Island on December 5, 2019 organized by PSDKP Ambon (Marine Resources and Fisheries Monitoring). "It turns out that the government prohibits damaging the marine ecosystem solely for the good of all of us tomorrow," Usman said. Since then, Usman has never again used bottom gill nets and compressor aids to catch fish. Now, Usman has switched to fishing with a tonda rod, an environmentally friendly fishing gear to catch large pelagic fish such as tuna, and using a hand line to catch demersal fish. Not infrequently, many residents criticize Usman. Some people think that Usman is too afraid of the rules made by the government, so he no longer does the fishing that he used to do before.

Usman's understanding increased after participating in the USAID SEA Project's Sea Warrior Training activities in Ambon City. Usman began to understand the importance of marine conservation, and he met sea warriors from other villages and provinces who shared the same vision of conserving marine ecosystems through the establishment of Marine Protected Areas for sustainable fisheries. Usman also began to invite the community, especially the fishermen of Gale-Gale Village, not to damage the environment, protect the marine ecosystem and no longer catch protected marine animals. In addition, he also began to approach fishermen who use bottom gill nets and compressor aids to stop using these environmentally unfriendly fishing tools.

Although currently, there are still fishermen who have not completely stopped fishing activities that are not environmentally friendly, Usman believes that with his continuous efforts and approaches, he can change the behavior of other fishermen who use compressors to become aware like him and not use compressors anymore, because in addition to damaging the marine ecosystem, the continuous use of compressors also has a negative impact on health.

In supporting the actions of sea warriors like Usman, WWF-Indonesia, together with the Maluku Province Maritime and Fisheries Service and law enforcement authorities, is encouraging the preparation of a Regional Action Plan (RAD) document and the establishment of a criminal action forum to counter destructive fishing activities in Maluku Province which is targeted to be effective by the end of 2020. The purpose of this document and forum is to serve as a legal umbrella and collaboration between provincial and local governments in efforts to tackle and reduce destructive fishing in Maluku Province.