Nigeria 'hotspot for pirates'
2008-04-16 11:21
Kuala Lumpur - Pirate attacks rose worldwide in the first quarter of the year, with Nigeria overtaking Indonesia as the country worst plagued by sea
bandits, said a global maritime watchdog on Wednesday.
Seafarers suffered 49 attacks between January and March around the
world, up 20% from the 41 recorded in the same period last year,
the International Maritime Bureau said in a report by its piracy
reporting centre in Malaysia.
Nigeria ranked as the number one hotspot amid a lack of effective law
enforcement, with its 10 reported attacks - mostly off its main city of
Lagos - accounting for one-fifth of the global total, the London-based
bureau said.
Myriad armed groups roam the Niger Delta, where violence had slashed
oil production and helped propel oil prices to new highs. Nigeria
produced about 2.1 million barrels of oil a day, the largest output in
Africa.
"Violence in the waters off Nigeria is spiralling out of control,"
the report said, adding that the true number of incidents could be even
higher because many attacks in the oil sector were believed to go
unreported.
Low-key attacks
The bureau added: "It should not take a crisis leading to deaths, bombs and the
withdrawal of services by shipping companies before the (Nigerian)
government is forced to act."
India and the Gulf of Aden off the north coast of Somalia tied for
second place among pirate-troubled territories, with both reporting
five incidents apiece. Those in India were low-key attacks aimed at
theft, while the Gulf of Aden was prone to hijackings.
Indonesian waters had long been the world's most afflicted by
pirates, but the number of attacks in the first quarter fell from nine
last year to four in 2008, the report said.
"For the first time in the last decade ... Indonesia is no longer
ranked with the highest number of reported incidents," the bureau said.
"The Indonesia navy and police should be commended for the anti-piracy
measures taken."
Security also improved in the Straits of Malacca, a bustling
shipping route shared by Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. No attacks
were reported this year, compared to two by this time in 2007. The
waterway had long been notorious for attacks, but the three countries
Other countries recording attacks in the first quarter included
Tanzania with four, and the Philippines, Bangladesh, Peru, Angola,
Ghana and Mozambique with two each.
"The use and threat of violence against crew members remained
unacceptably high," the maritime bureau said.
- AP