What pirate attacks mean

What pirate attacks mean

Mariners and shipping companies tired of pirate attacks dared
hope that the Dec. 26 tsunami had cleaned out buccaneers and
hideout coves along Sumatra's indented coastline. But the
regenerative powers of this ancient breed of brigands are
unhelpfully well celebrated.

They were back in the past week, seizing crewmen for ransom in
separate boardings of commercial vessels in the Malacca Strait.

The view that the gangs could have been quiet because of the
presence of multinational naval contingents engaged in tsunami
relief operations in Aceh will bring no cheer. The last of the
American relief ships departed Sumatra on Wednesday, as the
Indonesian government had expressed a wish to have all foreign
military involvement ended by this month. This is not a vacuum,
but the new circumstances will place the littoral states'
combined naval and marine police resources under great pressure.

Shipping firms should also not shirk their responsibilities in
investing in shipboard security systems and satellite
surveillance.
-- The Straits Times, Singapore