Piracy attacks off the Somali coast are set to double this year as lucrative ransoms and difficulties policing vast swathes of ocean lure increasing numbers of pirates onto the seas, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said on Tuesday. The Kuala Lumpur-based centre said there have been 200 attacks off the Somali coast and in the Gulf of Aden so far this year, compared to 111 during the whole of 2008.
Attacks in the region now account for just over half of all incidents of piracy worldwide, up from 37 percent in 2008, the IMB said.
“We believe that the driving force behind the increase is the ransoms being demanded and the money that is being paid,” Cyrus Mody, manager at IMB, told Maktoob News.
“There are no other avenues for the shipping companies to go down at present other than to pay the money,” he added.
Piracy has soared in the last couple of years along with the escalating social and political chaos inside Somalia.
Two decades of war and lawlessness have made piracy one of the few viable businesses, while lax law enforcement has allowed pirates to operate with virtual impunity.
In response to the escalating attacks, the world’s naval powers have deployed dozens of warships to the lawless waters off Somalia, but the latest IMB figures suggest the show of force is not deterring pirates.
The IMB said, however, the increased naval presence has reduced the number of successful hijackings.
“The naval presence is proving effective. We have seen from the figures that there has been a drop in the number of successful hijackings,” Mody said.
There have been 41 successful hijackings off the Somali coast and in the Gulf of Aden so far this year, compared to 42 in 2008, he said.
Mody said 10 vessels remained captured by pirates with 226 people held hostage.
Shippers have expressed frustration at the international naval force’s ability to curb the attacks.
“There is a huge naval presence in the region’s waters and south towards Somalia, yet the number of attacks continues to rise ... I question what these naval ships are doing for the pirates to be able to increase their activities,” said George Varghese, general manager at shipping agents Rais Hassan Saadi Group.
Attacks in the region now account for just over half of all incidents of piracy worldwide, up from 37 percent in 2008, the IMB said.
“We believe that the driving force behind the increase is the ransoms being demanded and the money that is being paid,” Cyrus Mody, manager at IMB, told Maktoob News.
“There are no other avenues for the shipping companies to go down at present other than to pay the money,” he added.
Piracy has soared in the last couple of years along with the escalating social and political chaos inside Somalia.
Two decades of war and lawlessness have made piracy one of the few viable businesses, while lax law enforcement has allowed pirates to operate with virtual impunity.
In response to the escalating attacks, the world’s naval powers have deployed dozens of warships to the lawless waters off Somalia, but the latest IMB figures suggest the show of force is not deterring pirates.
The IMB said, however, the increased naval presence has reduced the number of successful hijackings.
“The naval presence is proving effective. We have seen from the figures that there has been a drop in the number of successful hijackings,” Mody said.
There have been 41 successful hijackings off the Somali coast and in the Gulf of Aden so far this year, compared to 42 in 2008, he said.
Mody said 10 vessels remained captured by pirates with 226 people held hostage.
Shippers have expressed frustration at the international naval force’s ability to curb the attacks.
“There is a huge naval presence in the region’s waters and south towards Somalia, yet the number of attacks continues to rise ... I question what these naval ships are doing for the pirates to be able to increase their activities,” said George Varghese, general manager at shipping agents Rais Hassan Saadi Group.