BIMCO president rages over pirates kidnapping and murder

THE shipping industry is being urged to stage a "highly audible protest" against piracy and for ships` sirens to sound for 30 seconds every day at noon, in every port in the world, to "draw public attention to the criminals who are now menacing world trade, and who are holding nearly 800 seafarers captive," said BIMCO`s president.

Speaking at the regional cooperation agreement on combating piracy and armed robbery against ships in Asia (ReCAAP) conference in Singapore, BIMCO president Robert Lorenz-Meyer suggested that such a protest was necessary to remind governments of the urgency of measures to deal with the piracy problem.


He warned that attacks on merchant vessels by Somali pirates are "about to cut the sea lanes in and out of the Persian Gulf and are attacking an industry "on which the world depends for economic stability and growth."


A statement issued by BIMCO said Mr Lorenz-Meyer "praised the work of the multi-national naval force protecting merchant shipping in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, in particular noting the `brilliant examples` set by some of the Asian warships in successfully confronting the pirates` use of captured vessels as motherships."


Mr Lorenz-Meyer contrasted the work done by some of the states involved in the action against pirates and their robust work to free ships and captive seafarers with the `silk gloves` worn by others in dealing with the menace."


BIMCO said its members are of the opinion that unless there are "serious consequences" for the criminals, they will continue to attack merchant shipping. The president pointed out that not all states have ratified UNCLOS or the SUA conventions, while some states that have ratified these international documents do not yet have national legislation in place enabling their enforcement agencies to arrest and prosecute pirates. He welcomed the harsh sentences of 20 or 30 years being meted out in the courts of Kenya and the Seychelles for those convicted.


Governments of the world, said Mr Lorenz-Meyer, "must get their act together" on piracy and establish a comprehensive strategy to deal with the problem. Such action "must aim to reverse the malicious will of the pirates, rather than pretend to reduce their capability," he said.


It must, he added, fundamentally change the risk/reward ratio currently in favour of the pirates and offer them alternative livelihoods. Such matters, he said, were the responsibility of governments.