Pirates seize nine more Pinoy seamen off Africa
FIDEL JIMENEZ AND MARK JOSEPH UBALDE, GMANews.TV
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Foreign Affairs on Saturday said nine more Filipino seafarers have been seized by sea pirates in the Gulf of Aden.
DFA Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Esteban Conejos Jr. said the figure raises the total number
Filipino seafarers being held captive off the Horn of Africa to 54.
In a text message coursed through DFA spokesman Claro Cristobal, Conejos said the additional nine captive Pinoy seamen were part of 13-man crew of the German-owned, Antigua and Barbuda-flagged freighter M/T BBC Trinidad.
The said freighter ship was hijacked by suspected Somali pirates on August 21, the same day when chemical tanker MT Irene, a Panama-flagged and operated by Japan’s Koyo Company, was hijacked with 19 crewmen including 15 Filipino seamen, not 16 as earlier reported.
On Aug. 19, suspected Somali pirates also seized MT Bunga Melati 2 with 10 Filipino seamen, while 20 other Filipino seafarers were held captives by the pirates when they commandeered MV Stella Maris on July 27.
“The DFA has instructed embassies in Berlin and Nairobi to coordinate with ship owners, international maritime authorities and host government, in the efforts to secure the safe and speedy release of the crewmembers," Conejos’ message said.
Following the August 19 hijacking, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) warned all ships crossing the Gulf of Aden to look out for two suspicious vessels believed to be used in piracy.
The IMB, a non-profit making organization, which fights against all types of maritime crime and malpractice, advised ship officers to "maintain a strict visual and radar watch" when passing through the Gulf of Aden.
"The description of the suspected trawlers - long white, Russian made stern trawlers with names 'BURUM OCEAN or ARENA or ATHENA'," posted the IMB in its website.
It added: "One of the trawlers is believed to be operating at approximately 60 NM NE of Bossasso, Somalia in the Gulf of Aden."
According to the IMB, in 2006, there were 239 attacks in high seas where 77 crew members were kidnapped and 188 taken hostage but only 15 of the pirate attacks resulted in murder.
In 2007 however, the attacks rose by 10% to 263 attacks while there was a 35% increase on reported attacks involving guns.
The impoverished country of Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991 and foreign vessels are frequently seized for ransom by pirates armed with rocket-propelled grenade launchers and automatic weapons, making it difficult and expensive to deliver aid to the region.
In June, the UN Security Council voted to allow international warships to enter Somali waters to combat the problem. But its 1,880-mile coastline — the longest in Africa — remains virtually unpoliced. - GMANews.TV
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Foreign Affairs on Saturday said nine more Filipino seafarers have been seized by sea pirates in the Gulf of Aden.
DFA Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Esteban Conejos Jr. said the figure raises the total number
Filipino seafarers being held captive off the Horn of Africa to 54.
In a text message coursed through DFA spokesman Claro Cristobal, Conejos said the additional nine captive Pinoy seamen were part of 13-man crew of the German-owned, Antigua and Barbuda-flagged freighter M/T BBC Trinidad.
The said freighter ship was hijacked by suspected Somali pirates on August 21, the same day when chemical tanker MT Irene, a Panama-flagged and operated by Japan’s Koyo Company, was hijacked with 19 crewmen including 15 Filipino seamen, not 16 as earlier reported.
On Aug. 19, suspected Somali pirates also seized MT Bunga Melati 2 with 10 Filipino seamen, while 20 other Filipino seafarers were held captives by the pirates when they commandeered MV Stella Maris on July 27.
“The DFA has instructed embassies in Berlin and Nairobi to coordinate with ship owners, international maritime authorities and host government, in the efforts to secure the safe and speedy release of the crewmembers," Conejos’ message said.
Following the August 19 hijacking, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) warned all ships crossing the Gulf of Aden to look out for two suspicious vessels believed to be used in piracy.
The IMB, a non-profit making organization, which fights against all types of maritime crime and malpractice, advised ship officers to "maintain a strict visual and radar watch" when passing through the Gulf of Aden.
"The description of the suspected trawlers - long white, Russian made stern trawlers with names 'BURUM OCEAN or ARENA or ATHENA'," posted the IMB in its website.
It added: "One of the trawlers is believed to be operating at approximately 60 NM NE of Bossasso, Somalia in the Gulf of Aden."
According to the IMB, in 2006, there were 239 attacks in high seas where 77 crew members were kidnapped and 188 taken hostage but only 15 of the pirate attacks resulted in murder.
In 2007 however, the attacks rose by 10% to 263 attacks while there was a 35% increase on reported attacks involving guns.
The impoverished country of Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991 and foreign vessels are frequently seized for ransom by pirates armed with rocket-propelled grenade launchers and automatic weapons, making it difficult and expensive to deliver aid to the region.
In June, the UN Security Council voted to allow international warships to enter Somali waters to combat the problem. But its 1,880-mile coastline — the longest in Africa — remains virtually unpoliced. - GMANews.TV
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