The Hindu Business Line : Concerted action against sea piracy is key

The rise in sea piracy off Somalia coast and the great threat to seafarers came into sharp focus at a seminar held at Kochi on the occasion of National Maritime Day recently. Last year there were as many as 239 incidents involving 49 hijackings, and 889 crew members being held hostage. Interestingly, all this happened during a period largely marked by an acute shortage of seafarers. The experts who addressed the seminar expressed concern over “the growing threat to the seafaring profession.”

With organised gangs now operating with sophisticated weapons, the threat is far more serious now. Weak maritime regulations, radical political activity, poverty and the rise of crime syndicates are cited as reasons for the increased piracy in these areas.

Range of measures

According to Mr M.V. Ramamurthy, President (Shipping), Reliance Industries Ltd, the roots of piracy, being land-based, cannot be elimiated just with maritime regulations and guidelines. Ships and seafarers ca be better protected if the maritime states concerned had the will to intervene and protect the sea lanes.

The International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) and similar organisations suggested a range of measures, emphasising the need for international assistance, particularly to those states keen to combat piracy but lacking the means to do so even as piracy remained a real threat in their respective territorial waters.

After all, international shipping, accounting for more than 90 per cent of global trade, cannot stop because of piracy or war. The confidence of seafarers must be ensured through protection of ships and seafarers in the international waters through the concerted efforts of all nations.

A joint working group of the IMO and ILO recently expressed concern over long detention of seafarers and issued guidelines to port state authorities, flag states, the seafarers’ states and ship-owners suggesting how to mitigate the problem, he said.

Interestingly, prosecution of seafarers would often take place due to considerations not strictly related to violation of law or due to political matters. There are instances to show that many governments would prosecute seafarers citing violations with the sole objective of collecting money by way of fines.

The maritime industry in general, and seafarers in particular, welcome the adoption, in 2006, of new IMO/ILO Guidelines on the Fair Treatment of Seafarers. Maritime bodies must persuade the EU and the US and other such countries to keep their local laws in line with the Guidelines and a simple negligence by the seafarer or an unintentional human error should not trigger criminal liability, it is felt.

Legal aspects of piracy

Capt S. Pullat of Aumni Shipping Consultants, Chennai, said seafarers booked under criminal procedures would often be fined, detained and finally abandoned. No seafarer would recommend seafaring as a career any more, given the negative effect of such moves.

Detaining the accused unless found guilty was against the general principles of trial, he said.

Referring to the legal aspects of piracy, Ms Thushara James, a practising lawyer, suggested modification of the definition of piracy under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS) to include acts of violence motivated by political objectives too. In the context of maritime terrorism, this would facilitate UNCLOS to jointly address the problems of piracy and terrorism.

More Stories on : Piracy | Shipping/Ports

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Serving food on planes, a serious biz indeed

Delhi airport

Plans to develop Vadinar facility

Pipavav gears up for growth spurt

Container, iron ore cargoes boost NMP traffic

No sign of early logistics recovery

‘Focus will be on harnessing revenue from various streams’

Seminar on shipping documentation

Idle rakes have their uses too

Concerted action against sea piracy is key