| The story is from early yesterday, so may be out of date already. |
Pirates who hijacked a Japanese tanker off Somalia earlier this week are demanding a U.S. warship shadowing the vessel back off, the wife of the tanker's foreman said Friday. "Apparently the navy ship was getting closer to them," Tess Villanueva, wife of the crew's foreman, Laureano, told The Associated Press in the Philippines. "The good news would be if they (pirates) leave the ship."
| No, the good news would be if U.S. sailors wrapped the pirates in anchor chain and dropped them overboard ... |
Villanueva said the information was relayed to her late Thursday by Redentor Anaya, vice president for operations of SeaCrest Maritime Management Inc., which recruited the Filipino crew for the Golden Nori.
Negotiations have started for the release of the Golden Nori, anchored in Somali waters with 23 crew members from the Philippines, South Korea and Myanmar, said Josefina Villanueva, Laureano's sister. Josefina Villanueva said there had been no ransom demand from the pirates. "The talks are just starting. I think the pirates will later on demand something," she said. "We're very worried," she added. "We're holding daily prayers in our house."
| Piracy "is a very serious security problem on the African coast. These are not pirates who will remind you of Johnny Depp. These are quite different kinds of pirates," [US Assistant Secretary of State Christopher] Hill told reporters in Seoul, South Korea. |
The U.S. Navy's guided missile destroyer USS Porter came to the aid of the Japanese chemical tanker this week, at one point opening fire to destroy pirate skiffs tied to it. It was not known Friday which U.S. Navy ship was near the tanker now.
On Thursday, the U.S. Navy said that it intended to remove the pirates from the Golden Nori, which was carrying benzene. Benzene, an industrial solvent, is both highly flammable and can be fatal if too much is inhaled.
On Friday, Philippine Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Esteban Conejos said the captain of the ship contacted the Japanese company that owns the vessel the day before and reported that the crew was fine. There has been no direct contact between the Philippine government and the pirates, he added. "The problem is there is no central government in control (in Somalia)," he said.
Earlier this week, a North Korean tanker overrun by pirates was taken back after crew members overpowered the hijackers in a bloody fight. The hijackers were being held aboard the ship until they can be handed over for prosecution at a port.
| We can't hold a proper tribunal at sea? |
After the clash, Navy personnel boarded the North Korean boat to treat the wounded. The U.S. efforts came despite its hostile relations with the communist country over its nuclear program. "You'll always find our Navy prepared to help any ship in distress and certainly any ship that is confronting pirates," said Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, the top American envoy to six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear disarmament. Piracy "is a very serious security problem on the African coast. These are not pirates who will remind you of Johnny Depp. These are quite different kinds of pirates," Hill told reporters in Seoul, South Korea. "So, I think we were pleased to be able to help in this regard and I hope the [North] understands that we did this out of the sense of good will that we have on this," he said.
Somali pirates are trained fighters, in some cases linked to powerful Somali clans, outfitted with sophisticated arms and equipment, including GPS satellite instruments. They have seized merchant ships, ships carrying aid, and once even a cruise ship. The United States also has supported efforts to quell an Islamic insurgency in Somalia. |