'Malacca Strait route not a war risk'<\/p>\n
Agence France-Presse, Singapore<\/p>\n
Singapore shippers have urged an international insurance body to
\nremove the Malacca Strait, one of the world's busiest waterways,
\nfrom its list of \"war risk\" areas incurring possible higher
\npremiums.<\/p>\n
Security in the strait, which carries about a third of global
\ntrade on 50,000 ships annually, has much improved, the Singapore
\nMaritime Foundation said in a statement obtained on Thursday.<\/p>\n
The strait between Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia has been
\nlisted among the world's worst waters for piracy and some
\ngovernments in the region worry it could also be a target for
\nextremist groups.<\/p>\n
The Joint War Committee (JWC) of the Lloyd's Market
\nAssociation added the strait to its list of war risk areas last
\nJune. The Market Association is an insurance body that advises
\nmembers of Lloyd's of London.<\/p>\n
\"Following this, some underwriters issued notices to their
\ncustomers advising that additional premiums would have to be paid
\nfor ships transiting the Strait,\" said the Singapore Maritime
\nFoundation, an industry organization.<\/p>\n
The Joint War Committee (JWC) made its designation without
\nconsulting the industry or littoral states and acted only on the
\nrecommendation of a security consulting company, the Foundation
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
In August Malaysia's Transport Minister Chan Kong Choy also
\nurged the strait's removal from Lloyd's list.<\/p>\n
In September the JWC's head met maritime industry
\nrepresentatives in Singapore and agreed to consider alternative
\ninformation, the Singapore Maritime Foundation said.<\/p>\n
The foundation then commissioned London's International
\nInstitute for Strategic Studies to commission a report on \"the
\nthreat of maritime terrorism\" in the Malacca Strait.<\/p>\n
The foundation said it sent the report to the JWC on Dec. 13
\nand understands it will be considered early in the new year when
\nthe JWC meets to review its list of war list areas.<\/p>\n
\"It is hoped that, following its review, the JWC will be
\npersuaded that the security situation has very much improved and
\nwill remove the Malacca Strait from the list,\" the statement
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The International Maritime Bureau said the Malacca Strait
\nrecorded 38 pirate attacks in 2004, a number second only to the
\n94 in Indonesian waters.<\/p>\n
This year there has been a dramatic reduction in attacks on
\nships in the Strait, the Bureau said, attributing the decline to
\nan increase in patrols by Indonesia on its side of the waterway.<\/p>\n
The Singapore government remains concerned about the potential
\nfor extremist attacks and Singapore's Home Affairs Minister Wong
\nKan Seng earlier this month said the region must focus on
\nmaritime security.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/malacca-strait-route-not-a-war-risk-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}