Piracy at ‘Intolerable’ Level, Says Maritime Executive
He said there had been nearly 100 hijackings, attempted or successful, with around 300 seamen being held by pirates, making the waters off Somalia the most dangerous in the world.
“The level of hijackings has clearly reached an intolerable level,” said Hayman, observing that attempts to protect ships by bringing in security companies had also been ineffective thus far.
“The simple fact is that even though there are patrols, warships cannot be everywhere. There are also grave dangers in the increasing militarisation of the waters off the Horn of Africa,” he said.
Seatrade specialises in publications, events, management training, awards schemes and websites covering all aspects of maritime activity.
In 2004, Seatrade Middle East opened in Dubai, emphasising the company’s commitment to the region.
Among the estimated 300 seamen currently being held by Somali pirates are the 25 crew of the Saudi Arabian-owned supertanker, Sirius Star — the largest ship taken by pirates — with US$100 million worth of crude oil on board.
Piracy is also affecting traffic through the vital Suez Canal linking the Red Sea to the Mediterranean, with a number of major shipping companies announcing the re-routing of cargo around South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.
Some US$30 million is estimated to have been paid in ransom this year alone and the pirates are said to be receiving an average of US$2 million for each vessel seized.
Hayman said a special seminar would be held at this year’s event to examine the enormous challenge which piracy now represented for ship operators in the region.
“In particular, we will be addressing the risk of injury to crew, the damage or loss of vessels or cargo as well as loss of earnings,” he added.
Held biennially in Dubai, the organisers said the 2008 edition of the exhibition would be the largest to date, with the participation of more than 250 companies and national pavilions being put up by countries such as China, France, Germany, Holland, India, Singapore and the United Kingdom.
Source: bernama
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This is a great article and many very good points made. One issue that has not been mentioned yet, is what will be the eventual effect of having so many different warships, from so many different countries, that have not “played well” together for many years? These war ships are all deployed in the same area and I think they will start paying more attention to each other than to the pirates. Just curious, but has anyone thought about this?