South East Asia Shipping Piracy Hotspot
Piracy attacks in South East Asian waters are up year-on-year, as are incidents in the Indian subcontinent, with Bangladesh a new hotspot, reveals Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty SE’s (AGCS) third annual Safety and Shipping Review 2015.
Although there has been good progress tackling activity in Somalia and the Gulf of Guinea, ensuring global attacks (245, according to International Maritime Bureau) are down for a fourth year in a row, piracy thrives elsewhere.
Asia now accounts for up to 60 percent of all piracy incidents in the world with 145 reported cases. The region’s share of global figures is increasing as the number of attacks in other parts of the world – particularly the Gulf of Aden and Somalia – continues to trend downwards.
The most dangerous seas are in fact those of South East Asia, where pirates appear to be adopting the successful piracy model used in the Gulf of Aden, that is, holding ships and crew for ransom. This has resulted in a 75% annual increase in the number of vessels hijacked, says Ron Johnson, Regional Marine Manager at AGCS Pacific in Sydney.
When people think of piracy, they usually think of Somalia or the Gulf of Aden. However, due to numerous successful international naval campaigns and operations, the West Indian Ocean is far from being the most perilous, he said.
The Regional piracy reporting centre ReCAAP ISC also revealed that more ships were the targets of pirates and armed robbers in Asia in 2014, as the number of incidents involving fuel siphoning grew.
Based on ReCAAP ISC’s annual report for 2014, there were 183 incidents in 2014, a 22 per-cent increase compared to 2013.
