Indonesia telah memberlakukan cabotage, suatu konsep atau asas yang melarangkapal asing ikut serta dalam pelayaran domestik di sepanjang perairan pesisirnegara pantai, sejak tahun 2005 dan diperkuat dengan UU No. 17 tahun 2008tentang Pelayaran, agar tercipta pelayaran nasional yang kuat. Pada saatpembahasan Rancangan Undang-Undang Cipta Kerja (sekarang Undang-Undang),muncul kembali perdebatan perlu atau tidaknya cabotage diatur dalam UU CiptaKerja. Penelitian ini membahas alasan-alasan negara memberlakukan cabotagekhususnya dalam bidang pelayaran; dan membandingkan kebijakan cabotage diIndonesia dengan kebijakan serupa di Amerika Serikat dan Malaysia. Denganmenggunakan penelitian yuridis normatif melalui pendekatan perundang-undangan(statutory approach) dan perbandingan (comparative approach), hasil penelitianini menyimpulkan bahwa setidaknya terdapat enam alasan negara memberlakukancabotage yaitu alasan strategi, ekonomi, operasional, pemasaran, pendidikan, danlingkungan. Keenam alasan ini akan dituangkan dalam kebijakan (policy) cabotageyang ketat (strict/protectionist cabotage) atau longgar (relaxed/liberal cabotage).Hasil penelitian ini juga menyimpulkan bahwa pada awalnya baik Indonesia,Amerika Serikat maupun Malaysia memberlakukan kebijakan cabotage yang ketat(strict cabotage), walaupun kemudian Malaysia menghapuskan cabotage dibeberapa negara bagiannya sejak tahun 2017; diikuti oleh Indonesia pada tahun2020 dengan membuka kesempatan bagi kapal asing untuk ikut serta dalampelayaran domestik sebagaimana diatur dalam UU Cipta Kerja. Perubahan inimembuat Malaysia dan Indonesia termasuk ke dalam negara dengan kebijakancabotage yang liberal, sedangkan Amerika Serikat masih tetap dengan kebijakancabotage-nya yang ketat.

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Indonesia has enacted cabotage since 2005, a conception or principle that prohibits

foreign vessels involved in the domestic shipping of a coastal state, then it was

inserted in Law No. 17 of 2008 concerning Shipping. The inclusion of such

provision in the Law aimed to create a strong national shipping. When government

prepared the Job Creation Bill (now Job Creation Law), there was a debate as to

whether the cabotage will still be governed in the Job Creation Law. This thesis

discusses the rationale for the enactment of cabotage in a state particularly in its

shipping sector; and cabotage policy in Indonesia by comparing it with the United

States and Malaysia. By conducting a normative juridical method with statutory

and comparative approaches, the thesis concludes that there are at least six reasons

of a state to impose cabotage, namely strategic, economic, operational, marketing,

educational, and environmental reasons. These six reasons will then be stated in

cabotage policy or law as a strict or protectionist cabotage; or a relaxed or liberal

cabotage. This thesis also concludes that initially, Indonesia, the United States and

Malaysia imposed a strict cabotage policy, although later on in 2017, Malaysia

decided to abolish cabotage in several of its states. It is followed then by Indonesia

in 2020 by providing opportunities for foreign vessels to participate in the domestic

shipping as regulated in the Job Creation Law. This policy change has made

Malaysia and Indonesia are considered as states with relaxed/liberal cabotage

policy, while the United States remains as strict cabotage policy.