Violent pirate attacks from Indonesia’s northern Sumatra island have soared, with seven kidnappings of crews for ransom from their ships in the past 90 days alone, the International Maritime Bureau said on Wednesday. However, there was no sign of links between the pirates and international terrorism, said Captain Pottengal Mukundan, director of the ocean crime watchdog, addressing one of the greatest fears of countries in the region. "There has been a serious problem in the northern Sumatra coast," Mukundan said at an IMB conference focusing on security in the Strait of Malacca, one of the world’s busiest sea lanes.
| "Yar! There ain't no links, an' I'll keelhaul the swab what sez there is!" |
He cited seven attacks in the past 90 days in a small area off the coast of Indonesia’s northernmost island, Sumatra. "The purpose of the attacks had been to abduct senior crew members of the ships for ransom," he told reporters. The Indonesian authorities had been alerted, he said. "We wait to see if these attacks have come down. The next 10 days will tell us if that’s the case or not." Policing the narrow sea lane between Malaysia and Indonesia that carries more than a quarter of world trade has come into sharp focus after warnings from Singapore of the danger of an attack by militants who could turn a tanker into a floating bomb. Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore agreed on Tuesday to launch a task force to patrol the 805-km (500 mile) long strait.
Indonesia, hampered by a shortage of funds and with a huge coastline to patrol, remained the weakest link in the three-nation effort to combat piracy, Mukundan said. Singapore has suggested links may exist between pirates and regional terror groups such as Jemaah Islamiah. This month, Indonesia’s navy chief ordered commanders to shoot on sight armed terrorists or pirates, an edict he said applied to the Malacca strait in particular.
| "String 'em up from the yardarm, Mr. Muslim!" |
Mukundan said the Malaysia meeting, attended by 187 delegates from 34 countries, had found no link between commercial piracy and international terrorism.
"It’s clear that piracy and terrorism are not converging, which is a good thing. But the big problem in this region is Indonesia. If we can solve the problem in Indonesia, there is no problem in Southeast Asia. There will be no piracy problem or threats to shipping at all."
| If I was a foot taller, I'd have a great career in basketball, too... |
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