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Freighter fights off pirates

CNN.com - Japanese freighter fights off pirates - Jul 4, 2006

The attacks raised concerns about a resurgence of piracy in the strait, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes and a key link between Asia and Europe.

In the latest attack, pirates on an unlit speedboat off Indonesia's Sumatra island followed the 26,989-gross-tonnage Japanese ship and tried to board it from the stern, said Noel Choong, chief of the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center in Kuala Lumpur.
Yet more Real Piracy in Malyasia - luckily not as bad as other incidents.
He said no injuries were reported among the all-Indonesian crew aboard the two boats, but the pirates stole and damaged equipment on the first ship and robbed the crew of cash and personal belongings on the other. The ships had been chartered by the U.N. World Food Program.
Real Piracy is a real problem - not just some over hyped propaganda exercise by the RIAA/MPAA who are worried about copyright violation theft - and it needs to be tackled before it gets out of hand. Experience shows that tackiling piracy needs regular pro-active patrols by Navy and Coastguard to prevent attacks :
The Strait of Malacca had been one of the most pirate-infested areas in the world, but attacks fell to an all-time low last year after increased naval patrolling by Indonesia and its neighbors.
Piracy is a genuine problem in many parts of the world - its is a transnational crime that can be commited to a ship from any nation at any time.

Isn't it time the major maritime nations got together and formed an Anti-Piracy taskforce to gather and share information about the activities of pirates and to run regular patrols in the most affected areas?

Apart from the high cost of piracy on the high seas - piracy has also been linked with terrorism, gun running, drug smuggling and the trafficking of people for sexual purposes - what used to be called the "white slave trade" in the old days.

Piracy - it isn't copyright theft and it isn't funny either - lets crack down on the Real Pirates.

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Posted by Dr. K on July 4, 2006 3:32 PM |

Comments

The House of Commons Select Committee on Transport has today published a report on Piracy. with statistics etc.

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmselect/cmtran/1026/102602.htm

The report warns of the risk of pirates aquiring or hacking into AIS which is soon to be mandatory:

73. The Automatic Identification System (AIS) is used by ships to transmit details of their course, speed, and port of destination to other ships and coastal authorities. The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) requires AIS to be fitted aboard all ships of 300 gross tonnage and upwards engaged on international voyages, cargo ships of 500 gross tonnage and upwards not engaged on international voyages, and all passenger ships irrespective of size. Ships fitted with AIS must normally maintain AIS in operation at all times

[...]

The Honourable Company of Master Mariners agreed:

'[technology] has allowed criminals access to information relating to the movement of ships and cargo even in the most deprived areas of the world … armed with this information, criminals are pre-warned to the arrival of the most lucrative ships and are so able to plan to attack them at the most vulnerable time or place'.[93]

75. If operated by pirates, AIS would enable them to track and target specific vessels, based on, for example, the value of the cargo.[94] Pirates who purchase (or steal) the receiving equipment can locate any ship in their area.

76. While

The BBC have a summary report:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/5154334.stm

Posted by: wtwu | July 7, 2006 12:52 AM

Why am I not surprised at this? I have already examined ShipTrack and wondered how useful open information like this would be to pirates but this is even worse.

Thanks

Posted by: drk | July 8, 2006 1:46 PM