The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) has responded to China’s decision to raise the security level for its vessels heading through the Strait of Malacca, asserting that no information has been received about an immediate threat.
According to Bloomberg, a notice was served by China’s transport ministry on July 2, advising Chinese-flagged vessels to adopt heightened security measures and raise their security warning to level three.
The seas around West Africa remain the world’s most dangerous for piracy, the International Maritime Bureau’s (IMB) latest report reveals.
Of the 75 seafarers taken hostage onboard or kidnapped for ransom worldwide so far this year, 62 were captured in the Gulf of Guinea – off the coasts of Benin, Cameroon, Guinea, Nigeria and Togo. Worldwide, the International Chamber of Commerce’s IMB Piracy Reporting Centre recorded 78 incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships in the first half of 2019, compared with 107 incidents for the same period of 2018. Overall, 57 vessels were boarded successfully, representing 73% of all attacks.
Pirates killed one person, took 38 crewmembers hostage, and kidnapped a further 37 for ransom.
Gulf of Guinea world piracy hotspot
The IMB report reveals 73% of all kidnappings at sea, and 92% of hostage-takings, took place in the Gulf of Guinea. Armed pirates in these high-risk waters kidnapped 27 crewmembers in the first half of 2019 and 25 in the same period in 2018. Two chemical tankers were hijacked, as well as a tug that was then used in another attack. Of the nine vessels fired upon worldwide, eight were off the coast of Nigeria, Africa’s top oil producer. These attacks took place on average 65 nautical miles off the coast – meaning they are classified as acts of piracy.
But there are some encouraging signs of improvement. The IMB Piracy Reporting Centre reports “a welcome and marked decrease” in attacks in the Gulf of Guinea for the second quarter of 2019, commending the Nigerian navy for actively responding to reported incidents by dispatching patrol boats. While recognising that many attacks go unreported, IMB recorded 21 incidents around Nigeria so far in 2019, down from 31 in the same period of 2018.
Naval vessels from Equatorial Guinea and Spain also intervened in May 2019 when a Nigerian tug was hijacked 41 nautical miles off Luba, Equatorial Guinea. Soon after, the pirates used the tug to launch an attack on a Maltese heavy load carrier. The crew retreated into the ship’s citadel, a safe room for protection against attackers. When the navies responded, the pirates left the vessel and the crew were freed. The IMB Piracy Reporting Centre thanks the naval vessels for their prompt assistance.
Warning to stay alert
Despite the recent fall in Gulf of Guinea attacks, IMB is urging seafarers in the region to remain vigilant and report all suspicious activity to regional response centres and the Piracy Reporting Centre. “Early detection of an approaching suspicious craft is key to prevent boarding and give time to raise the alarm and retreat into a citadel, if needed,” said an IMB spokesperson.
Meanwhile, in Malaysia, 10 crew were kidnapped from two fishing boats off eastern Sabah in June. Of these, nine crew are reported to have been released.
Around Indonesia, on-going information-sharing cooperation between the Indonesian Marine Police and the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre continues to show positive results. The 11 incidents reported in Indonesian waters remains the lowest Q2 figure since 2009 when three incidents were reported.
Violent attacks in South America
A vessel was fired upon in the Guayas River after departing from Guayaquil, Ecuador’s second largest city. This is the first time an incident involving the firing of weapons has been reported to the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre in Ecuador.
Elsewhere in South America, incidents of violent armed theft against ships at anchor have been reported in Callao in Peru, Jose Terminal in Venezuela and Macapa in Brazil. On 2 May 2019, when armed robbers boarded a yacht in San Ignacio de Tupile, Panama, shooting and killing a family member and injuring another, the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre liaised with the victims and authorities. The surviving family members including two children were rescued by Panamanian Marine Police.
Global anti-piracy support
Since 1991 the Piracy Reporting Centre’s 24-hour manned centre, has provided the maritime industry, governments and response agencies with timely and transparent data on piracy and armed robbery incidents – received directly from the Master of the vessel or its owners. This important work promotes the purpose of the International Chamber of Commerce to enable business to secure peace, prosperity and opportunity for all.
The IMB Piracy Reporting Centre’s prompt forwarding of reports and liaison with response agencies, its broadcasts to shipping via Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) Safety Net Services and email alerts to Company Security Officers, all provided free of charge, has helped the response against piracy and armed robbery and the security of seafarers, globally.
IMB strongly urges all shipmasters and owners to report all actual, attempted and suspected piracy and armed robbery incidents to the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre globally. This first step in the response chain is vital to ensuring that adequate resources are allocated by authorities to tackle piracy. Transparent statistics from an independent, non-political, international organisation can act as a catalyst to achieve this goal.
ZAMBOANGA CITY –– A Marine battalion has been deployed to Sulu to beef up the government’s security presence in the province, rocked by recent bombings in a military facility, and grappling with a long-running bout with terrorists.
Their mission: “Destroy the Abu Sayyaf … and establish a peaceful and stable environment in Sulu,” said Rear Admiral Erick Kagaoan, commander of Naval Forces Western Mindanao.
Hard times await pirates that operate on Nigerian waters, as the Suppression of Piracy and other Maritime Offences Bill, signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari recommended a life sentence for culprits.
A copy obtained by The Guardian, showed the law recommended various punishments for piracy, armed robbery, and other maritime-related offences ranging from life imprisonment to fines of N500 million, N250 million, and 12- 15 years imprisonment, depending on the gravity of the offence.
SAS Drakensberg (A301) arrived on station in the northern sector of the Mozambique Channel this week for a duty tour that will see anti-piracy and anti-crime taskings executed.
This is not the first time the 32-year-old fleet replenishment ship has been deployed on Operation Copper, the ongoing bilateral anti-piracy operation involving Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states Mozambique and South Africa.
American, African & Chinese Navies Gathering at The International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference in Ghana This July
– International Maritime Bureau: 22 Piracy Attacks in Q1, 2019
Admiral James G.Foggo, III: A safe, stable, and secure Africa is in the interest of the global community, our shared goals of a secure, stable, and prosperous Africa benefits not only our African partners and the U.S., but also the international community
–Rear Admiral Koi AlexisMaomou: IMDEC is a great opportunity to give, receive and discover new technological and scientific inventions in the field of defence and maritime safety
20 captains, commodores, rear admirals, vice admirals, & admirals discussing illegal oil-bunkering, piracy, unregulated and unreported fishing, smuggling, human and drug trafficking, illegal bunkering and crude oil theft on the 24th & 25th of July in Accra
Dubai and Accra, 27 June 2019
In the first quarter of 2019, IMB reported 38 incidents of piracy and armed robbery at sea, representing 28 fewer incidents than the first quarter of 2018 (66). IMB’s Piracy Reporting Centre detailed that 27 vessels were boarded; seven vessels were fired upon and four attempted attacks occurred in the first quarter of 2019. No vessels were reported as hijacked for the first time since the first quarter of 1994.
The Gulf of Guinea represented a high number of piracy and armed robbery attacks at sea, with 22 incidents reported in the first quarter of 2019. The region also accounted for all of the worldwide crew kidnappings as 21 crew members were kidnapped across five separate incidents. Incidents were reported in the coastal countries, of Benin, Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Nigeria and Togo in the first quarter of 2019.
Senior officials from the newly established Kenya Coast Guard Services are undergoing training on coast guard functions at a national workshop in Mombasa, Kenya (24-28 June).
Fifteen participants are taking part in the training, which is using scenario development methodology and plenary discussions to highlight issues, identify insights and develop deeper understanding of effective ways to meet coastguard functions – with a view to enhancing maritime security in Kenya.
The training is organised by the United Kingdom and IMO, under the auspices of the Jeddah Amendment to the Djibouti Code of Conduct. It is supported by a joint team from the UK Maritime Coastguard Agency (MCA), Royal Navy International Defence Training (RNIDT), and facilitated by the British Peace Support Team Africa (BPST(A)) and IMO. Other international partners supporting the implementation of the Djibouti code of Conduct (Japan, Denmark and the International Committee of the Red Cross) are also in attendance and contributing to the discussions.
Questioning the longstanding American policy of defending maritime security in the Persian Gulf, President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States does not “need to be there” for merchant shipping in the region.
“China gets 91% of its Oil from the [Strait of Hormuz], Japan 62%, & many other countries likewise. So why are we protecting the shipping lanes for other countries (many years) for zero compensation. All of these countries should be protecting their own ships on what has always been a dangerous journey,” he wrote in a Twitter post on Tuesday morning. “We don’t even need to be there in that the U.S. has just become (by far) the largest producer of Energy anywhere in the world!”
Somalia has launched a diplomatic offensive against Kenya in their dispute over the Indian Ocean waters prompting the Arab League to condemn Nairobi for annexing Mogadishu’s territory.
The Arab Parliament in which Somali has members claimed Kenya was drawing up an illegal map that includes taking away Somali territory. The taking sides in the disputes could now complicate the war on piracy in which more than 30 Indian Ocean rim countries have cooperated to decimate attacks and their success.
The Financial Times reports that the recent incidents in the Gulf of Oman have seen a rise in calls to maritime security companies by concerned shipping firms.
Since the attacks on the Front Altair and Kokuka Courageous, shipping companies who transit the region on a regular basis have been looking into additional protection for their vessels. During the height of Somali piracy in the region, it was the norm for the merchant marine to employ teams of armed guards in order to deter any potential attack, and it worked. No merchant vessel with armed guards has ever been hijacked in the Indian Ocean. That, combined with more aggressive and visible patrolling by the international naval forces present in the region, has seen the issue of piracy off Somalia reduce considerably since 2012.
The current threat, believed to be from Iran’s IRGC – an accusation denied by Iran – is leading to an increase in demand for armed protection services, a sector which has suffered considerably from rate cuts and an influx of cheaper personnel in recent years.
The main UK Private Maritime Security Companies (PMSC), such as Ambrey Risk and MAST report an increase in demand from previous and prospective clients keen to ensure the safety of their ships in the region.
While a team of armed guards is no match for the IRGC, even an unarmed security detail can offer additional security. Well trained guards on Watch duties can spot threats that crew might miss or dismiss as the local pattern of life and, while engaging hostile state actors is unlikely, they can offer the Master an early warning system that he may lack.
With the situation in the region fluid, it’s possible that a convoy escort programme, similar to that used in the Internationally Recognised Transit Corridor (IRTC) in the Gulf of Aden may be adopted, with support from the US Navy. Russia, China, South Korea and Japan’s MSDF have all run escorts through the Gulf of Aden, and a multi-national force may be more palatable to states bordering Iran.
However, nothing has been officially announced, leaving the shipping industry scrambling to come up with its own solutions, as is so often the case. The threat posed to vessels in the region continues to be real and the situation dangerous for crews.
Maritime Security News 