Joint War Committee
Somalian Piracy
The area where ships are at risk has now encroached into the Southern
Red Sea from the Gulf of Aden. The range of the pirate mother ships
means a large area of the Indian Ocean has to be regarded as
exposed and pirate tactics continue to evolve. Legal aspects
remain problematic and considerable numbers of
captured pirates are simply released. The recent US Executive Order
effectively requires insurers to contact OFAC should they be involved in
a piracy case.
EUNAVFOR believes that voyage registration is improving but
still perhaps 15% of vessels do not register with MSCHOA or
report to UKMTO and are therefore unable to benefit fully from the
naval protection which is available. It is reported that out
of 15,000 vessels which did register their transits, only 2 were
taken.
BMP (Best Management Practices)
The current version is BMP3, released June 2010. This version includes
details of self-protection measures and a feedback request to masters on
the effectiveness of the anti-piracy actions taken by the
vessel. It is clearly necessary for adequate training and
regular practice to be given to crews to enable them to
respond effectively when under attack or threat. Low
speed and low freeboard remain factors which
significantly increase the vulnerability of ships.
The British Government has produced this chart which neatly summarises navigation issues.
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