Piracy picking up in RI waters

Piracy picking up in RI waters

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Piracy is picking up in Indonesia's waters with nine attacks reported in the past two months in a new hot spot for sea robberies, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said yesterday.

In a statement released through its Regional Piracy Center in Kuala Lumpur, the London-based IMB warned ships plying Indonesian waters that containers and bulk carrier vessels were favorite targets.

The bureau said nine sea robberies occurred between Oct. 25 and Dec. 6 in a single location adjacent to the east coast of Sumatra province and northwest Java province.

"The attacks had a similar hallmark to the attacks that occurred in the waters in 1991 and 1992, with ships' crews being tied up, ships left without navigation and money, and crew effects stolen," the IMB said.