Report cites Indonesia worse spot for piracy
Report cites Indonesia worse spot for piracy
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Piracy on the high seas throughout the world rose substantially in the first three months of this year, with Indonesia remaining the most dangerous spot, maritime officials said.
The Kuala Lumpur-based International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said in its latest report on piracy obtained on Sunday that from January to March 1999, there were 66 cases of piracy, up from 47 acts worldwide during the previous three-month period.
Half of the 66 reported attacks occurred in Southeast Asia, with Indonesia and Singapore Straits accounting for 18 and 10 cases respectively.
"The piracy center has received many reports of piracy incidents in the (Indonesian) Bangka, Berhala and Gelasa Straits," it warned.
The IMB warned mariners to take precautionary measures when traveling through the Singapore Straits and the risky Indonesian waters.
It said that in many of the attacks the armed pirates threatened and assaulted ship's crew and robbed them of valuables.
However, the number of crew members taken hostage, threatened, assaulted, or injured fell this year. There were 60 such cases compared to 138 previously. There were no reported incidents of crew members killed.
Elsewhere, 16 piracy attacks took place in Africa, 10 in the Americas, five in the Far East, and one in the Indian sub- continent.
A British defense expert told a international conference on piracy this month that the Asian economic crisis had led to an upsurge in sea piracy in the region.
Increased hardship had led more "opportunist fishermen" and corrupt officials to resort to piracy, defense consultant Eric Morris told the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Defense Technology Exchange.
The crisis had also left less funds for sea patrols, making it easier for pirates to operate, he said.
Morris warned that the actual number of piracy cases was likely to be larger than reported since shipowners were often reluctant to draw attention to such incidents.