JAKARTA - Reza Valentino Simamora was six months into his fishing contract when he died in waters off Incheon, South Korea, in September 2025.

The 24-year-old from Medan had traveled to South Korea through Indonesia's official government placement program, working on the vessel Garamho under an E-9 visa. The accident happened while the crew was hauling in nets. A rope securing the vessel snapped, and Reza fell overboard. The search and rescue teams found his body four days later.

Minister Mukhtarudin said the government will ensure Reza's family gets all entitled benefits. They've collected 85 million rupiah through Indonesia's social insurance program. Other claims are still being processed by South Korean authorities and the employer.

“The claims process and determination of benefit amounts are under the authority of the employer and related institutions in South Korea. Nevertheless, the Ministry of P2MI continues to provide active assistance,” Mukhtaruddin said in a statement to the press on February 1.

A January 2025 study in Maritime Studies examined 55 deaths of Indonesian fishermen on East Asian vessels. The research found deaths occurred through violence, accidents, suicide, malnutrition and preventable illness. Isolation at sea combined with jurisdictional gaps lets many cases slip through without investigation.

Indonesia's Foreign Affairs Ministry has previously recorded 1,451 complaints from fishing crew about slavery, abuse, deaths, unpaid wages and illegal practices. The National Fisher's Center documented 123 labor violations from 2020 to 2023 alone, involving 325 victims.

The government has committed to ratifying ILO Convention 188 on fishing work standards by late 2026. Manpower Minister Yassierli called ratification "a constitutional duty to protect fishers." Indonesia would become the second Southeast Asian country after Thailand to adopt the protections.

Reza's body was flown home on October 3, 2025. His family buried him in Medan two days later.

“This is not merely an administrative matter, but the state's responsibility in upholding the dignity of migrant workers and their families. We will continue to monitor until the deceased's rights are fully received by the heirs,” Mukhtaruddin added further.