Tanker
hijackings on the rise
London, 26 June 1998
– International maritime crime investigators raised the alarm about the
growing incidence of tanker hijackings in south east Asia. They appealed to
governments to extradite pirates who put to shore on their territory so that
they c
an stand trial in the flag state of the hijacked vessel.
The International Maritime Bureau of the Paris-based
International Chamber of Commerce listed three recent hijackings of small to
medium-sized tankers in south east Asian waters and a fourth in the Arabian
Gulf last week.
All the vessels were carrying marine fuel oil.
While there is no information yet on the fate of the vessel seized in the Arabian
Gulf, all the other cases involved the transfer of cargo at sea to another tanker
IMB Director Pottengal Mukundan said: " Violence
and intimidation are hallmarks of these attacks. Crews have been beaten with
iron bars, tied together, gagged and blindfolded." He instanced one two
cases in which pirates smashed all communications and navigation equipment after
transferring the cargo to another tanker, leaving the plundered vessel virtually
blind on the high seas.
Captain Mukundan said there were indications that
the Asian economic crisis had caused pirates to switch their prey from general
cargo vessels to tankers carrying marine fuel oil. "There is always a ready
market for fuel at bargain prices for the countless small vessels and fishing
boats in these waters."
"It is an alarming development. Tankers are
sophisticated craft and transferring fuel at sea by untrained and inexperienced
criminal gangs involves obvious environmental risks," the IMB director
added.
A typical case last April involved the Malaysian
flag vessel Petro Ranger, bound for Singapore from Ho Chi Minh City with 11,000
tonnes of gas oil and kerosene. After tying up the crew, the pirates sailed
the vessel into Chinese waters under the false name of Wilby, flying the Honduran
flag.
The vessel was identified and arrested by Chinese
police while it was discharging its cargo into another tanker. After investigations
were completed the legitimate crew and the ship were allowed to leave the Chinese
port of Haikou but the pirates remain in Chinese custody. However the cargo
was impounded by Chinese customs on the grounds that there was an attempt to
smuggle the cargo into the country. No final decision has yet been taken on
its disposal.
Captain Mukundan commented: "We are encouraged
by the action of the Chinese authorities in arresting the pirates and we hope
that eventually they can be extradited. We urge the governments of all flag
states to apply for extradition and the governments of countries where the pirates
put into port to grant these requests so that these dangerous criminals can
be brought to justice."
The IMB Director added: "Cargo owners and
underwriters should be aware that customs in many countries are likely to treat
hijacked cargoes as attempts to smuggle. They are therefore well advised to
respond to a possible hijacking as quickly as possible. Customs authorities
may be more receptive to an application for the release of cargo if they receive
early notice of loss."
International
Maritime Bureau
Commercial
Crime Services