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Vessels 'still not taking adequate security measures'

Richard Meade - Wednesday 4 March 2009

A SIGNIFICANT proportion of vessels entering the pirate infested waters off the coast of Somalia are still not taking adequate security measures.
 
According to naval forces operating in the region and insurance industry sources in London, levels of security awareness on board vessels transiting the Gulf of Aden still vary massively, despite the well-publicised security threat posed by pirates. 

Many vessels are also failing to register their voyage information with naval forces operating in the region. 

Shipowners associations, insurance industry officials and military forces tasked with protecting vulnerable traffic in the Gulf have all recently held media and industry briefings urging owners to step up their efforts and ensure adequate protection is being taken. 

Addressing a legal seminar on the subject in London, International Chamber of Shipping president Spyros Polemis (pictured) stressed the “absolute importance” of all ships transiting the Gulf of Aden registering with EU Navfor, via its website. 

“Only in this way can ships ensure that military forces are aware of them so that they can give them protection and intervene if needed,” he said. 

Around 90% of traffic entering the Gulf are following the protective corridor established by European Union naval forces but many vessels do not register their full details or voyage plans. 

Naval officials within EU Navfor command point out that this lack of information has hamstrung their ability to identify specific risks and offer help to the most vulnerable vessels. 

The protective corridor has been moved further away from Yemen’s coastline since it was first established. This was done partly to route vessels away from domestic fishing traffic but also to escape the reception area of Yemen’s mobile phone network, which UK naval officials suspect was being used to co-ordinate pirate attacks. 

It has also been suggested that the pirate’s motherships are using Yemen’s territorial waters to hide from naval patrols in the region. 

While pirate attacks in the Gulf have dropped off significantly this year, recent estimates suggest that piracy in the region has cost the shipping industry over $60m in the last 12 months. Lloyd’s Market Association senior executive Neil Roberts estimates that $30m has been paid in ransom demands but another $30m should be added to that figure as a conservative estimate of negotiation and delivery costs. 

“Trade continues at a cost, but we need to be aware that piracy in Somalia is a working business and the naval solution being offered is little more than containment of the problem,” Mr Roberts said. 

According to Mr Polemis, naval protection will be needed for several years to come. 

“It is therefore vital that we try to maintain awareness of the threat that piracy presents to the lives of our crews, and to the security of the free movement of trade, both with politicians and policy makers, and with the media and the public at large.”