http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2014/10/10/piracy-is-on-the-rise-in-the-worlds-most-crucial-shipping-lane/
Piracy is on the rise in the world’s most crucial shipping lane
By Ishaan Tharoor October 10 at 3:30 AM
A man sits in an unpowered boat as ships in the background lie at anchor in
the Singapore Strait July 6, 2014. (REUTERS/Tim Wimborne)
Last week, the Sunrise 689, a Vietnamese oil tanker, disappeared off the
radar. This Thursday, it motored toward the Vietnamese coast under
protection of a naval vessel. Pirates of unknown nationality had seized the
ship Oct. 2 and kept its crew hostage while they siphoned a third of its
cargo: some 2,000 metric tons of oil. "They put knives on our throats and
threatened to kill us if we resist," the ship's deputy captain told the
Associated Press by cellphone. One crew member broke his leg after trying
to flee the pirates, reported the AP.
Luckily, there were no fatalities. The pirates jumped ship with their
stolen booty and the tanker had to enlist the help of a passing fishing
vessel to figure out its location and call for help.
The incident marked the latest pirate attack near the Malacca Strait, a
body of water that links the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea, making
it perhaps the world's most vital conduit for global shipping. It carries
some 40 percent of world trade through its waters every year. The lands
flanking these waters have been contested by local kingdoms and sultanates,
Arabs, Chinese, and the forces of European colonial powers. Singapore, one
of the world's most important ports, emerged in the 19th century as a
pivotal entrepot straddling this passage. It was also, in its early days, a
haven for pirates.
The attack was the 12th such pirate hijacking attempt in Southeast Asia
since April, raising concerns about an escalation in piracy in this
strategic waterway. The rise has been conspicuous enough that it initially
dominated the fevered speculation surrounding Malaysian Airlines flight
370, when it tragically disappeared earlier this year.
>From a dip in 71 attacks reported in the Malacca Strait and adjacent South
China Sea in 2009, numbers surged back to 161 reported attacks in 2013.
This graph from German news site Deutsche Welle lays out the trend over the
past two decades.
(Deutsche Welle)
Half a decade ago, as the world fretted over the terrors of Somali piracy,
strategists pointed to the relative success of counter-piracy measures in
the Malacca Strait as a guide for how to deal with the threat of the Horn
of Africa. In a 2011 report, the American Enterprise Institute, a D.C-based
conservative think tank, hailed the success of the "Malaccan formula":
The Strait of Malacca between Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore offers
some interesting solutions. The “formula” in the Strait of Malacca, as
outlined by Lt. Commander Jamiola of the U.S. Navy, consists of
state-sponsored naval forces, regional intelligence sharing, surface
surveillance radars, an effective court system, and fighting the origins of
piracy on land. It has proved extremely successful, with the number of
pirate attacks in the region declining each year since 2003.
An international task force began patrolling the waters off Somalia's
lengthy coastline along a similar model, forcing Somali pirate
"motherships" further afield from their bases on shore. The number of
pirate attacks dried up, with piracy off West Africa's coast now becoming a
greater security concern.
Piracy monitors caution that the recent spike in attacks near the Malacca
Strait involves many "low-level thefts," including raids and burglaries
conducted at night when ships are at anchor in port. The growing trend does
not necessarily mean there's a greater deterioration and pirate threat in
the region. This year alone, the U.S. navy held military exercises with
Singapore that focused in part on anti-piracy maneuvers.
Ishaan Tharoor writes about foreign affairs for The Washington Post. He
previously was a senior editor at TIME, based first in Hong Kong and later
in New York.
Received on Fri Oct 10 2014 - 15:13:37 EDT