Piracy concerns don’t get the headlines they once did, but it remains a problem for seafarers.
The pirates of Somalia drew the world’s attention to the deadly threats faced by seafarers.
Their exploits eventually managed to put such dangers before the eyes of cinema goers with Tom Hank’s portrayal of the Maersk Alabama’s Capt. Phillips on the silver screen in 2013.
Since then, as the navies of the world collaborated to protect merchant shipping in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, and as merchant ships increasingly took precautionary measures including the hire of private armed guards, Somali piracy was effectively suppressed.
As the number of attacks and the number of seafarers held for ransom dwindled, there has been a temptation to declare “Mission Accomplished.”
However, recent events show that the Somali pirates have not yet thrown in the towel, and neither have their counterparts in other regions.
Somali pirates returned to action in March, hijacking a bunker tanker and a dhow off the Horn of Africa. While holding the tanker and its crew hostage, the pirates sought to justify their action as a protest against continued illegal fishing in Somali waters. It has been reported that the ship and seafarers were subsequently released without any ransom being paid.
The hijacked dhow and its crew was also released, but not before the pirates took one skiff (motorboat), fuel and other supplies. Some fear that the skiff will be used for future pirate attacks.
It seems that to hammer this point home, just as this article was ready to be sent for publication, on April 1 another dhow with 11 crew on board was hijacked by Somali pirates. They sailed the dhow close to the coast and made demands for ransom.
These very recent incidents serve as timely reminders to vessel operators navigating off Somalia. The piracy threat, whilst curtailed, has certainly not been eradicated. Therefore, precautionary measures must still be employed. The decisions that lead to these vessels navigating dangerously close to the Somali coast might understandably be considered by some as contributing factors. Fortunately, this time, no innocent lives were lost.
That has not been the case in Asia.
Hijackings of small tankers in Asia between 2014 and 2016 had raised concerns, leading to renewed efforts to protect merchant shipping from the resurgence of piracy in the traditional sense of the word. Prior to the increase in tanker hijackings, there had also been a spate of tug and barge hijackings. These pirates were not interested in ransom payments, but rather they sought the cargo on the tankers and the tugboats themselves. By 2016, both activities had been effectively suppressed as a result of proactive measures taken by regional nations working closely with industry stakeholders.
Seafarers generally had not been targeted by these criminals until 2016, when there was a sudden rash of kidnappings of crew on tugboats.
Yet, sadly, threats to seafarers in Asia persist, albeit with a new goal: ransom.
The Somali pirates became famous for kidnapping crew for ransom, demanding amounts that soared into the millions. Unlike the pirates in Asia, at least up until 2016, the Somali pirates had no interest in the vessels or cargos, unless a captured vessel could be used as a mothership needed to expand their range far from the Somali coast across the Indian Ocean.
In Asia the perpetrators of kidnap and ransom crimes have primarily operated in the Celebes and Sulu Seas. Their first victims for the most part were unfortunate tourists enjoying diving weekends. Unlike the Somali pirates, kidnappers in Asia were less hesitant to kill their hostages if ransom demands were not met.
Seafarers generally had not been targeted by these criminals until 2016, when there was a sudden rash of kidnappings of crew on tugboats. According to a special report published March 31 by the ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre in Singapore, in the past 12 months there have been 13 attacks resulting in the kidnapping of crew, and nine attempted attacks. The pirates have gone beyond their previous focus on tugboats and fishing craft and are now pursuing larger bulk carriers, container ships and tankers.
To date 58 seafarers have been kidnapped. Of these, 37 have been released and 21 remain as hostages.
Tragically, several seafarers have been killed, including the Feb. 19 death of one crew member on a Vietnamese general cargo ship. During the attack the victim was shot while six others were kidnapped.
Another area where piracy remains a threat to the safety of seafarers is the Western Coast of Africa. Here ships in the Gulf of Guinea are aggressively attacked by pirates who exchange fire with onboard naval security teams. In addition to the obvious dangers from such firefights, seafarers have also been kidnapped for ransom.
In light of these activities off Somalia, in Asia and in the Gulf of Guinea, it is evident that the threat of piracy in various forms continues to plague shipping.
Yet it does not end with piracy. There are many other criminal activities and maritime security risks that seafarers must contend with varying degrees all over the world. These range from smuggling to stowaways and from armed robbery to acts of war and terrorism.
In addition, much attention is now being paid to cybersecurity and the related risks to shipping. Can a hacker manage to remotely take command of a ship’s navigational equipment and machinery? Many fear that this is a real possibility.
The world of maritime transport has not yet seen the last of the contemporary pirates, and the threat of pirate attack is only one of many maritime perils seafarers continue to face on a regular basis.
Thomas Timlen of Singapore-based ZIAglobal has nearly 30 years of experience with advising and writing on maritime topics such as piracy, environmental protections and seafarers’ rights.