IMO panel reports 87 first-quarter acts of piracy, armed robbery

IMO panel reports 87 first-quarter acts of piracy, armed robbery    The Maritime Safety Committee of the International Maritime Organization, meeting at the IMO's headquarters in London, said 87 acts of piracy and armed robbery against ships occurred during the first quarter of 2004.
   Out of those acts, 26 constituted alleged attempted attacks.
   'Most of the attacks were reported in port areas while the ships were at anchor or on berth,' the IMO said in a statement.
   In that period, 23 crewmembers and passengers were killed, 41 crewmembers injured, 30 missing, two vessels were sunk and one ship was set ablaze.
   In several incidents reported, vessel crews were violently attacked by groups of two to 10 persons carrying guns or knives. In one pirate attack, all crewmembers were forced to jump overboard. Some of the incidents 'were kidnap cases for ransom,' the IMO noted.
   The locations of the most attacks against vessels while en route on a voyage were the South China Sea and the Malacca Strait. Incidents in the Caribbean increased sharply in March, compared to January and February. The reverse was true for the Indian Ocean, where incidents were highest in January and dropped noticeably in February and March.
   The areas affected over the period under review were the South China Sea (24 incidents), South America (12 incidents in total, nine in the Caribbean Sea), the Indian Ocean (11), West Africa (20), the Malacca Strait (17), East Africa (three), the Atlantic Ocean (two) and the Pacific Ocean (one).
   Cargo areas of vessels proved to be the part of a ship that pirates raided most often (32 incidents), followed by master and crew accommodations (20 incidents). Guns were used in 17 incidents, knives in 16 attacks.
   The IMO panel defined piracy as 'any illegal acts of violence or detention, or any act of depredation, committed for private ends by the crew or the passengers of a private ship or a private aircraft against another ship or aircraft,' and armed robbery as any acts of violence other than piracy against ships or planes.
   The IMO is the United Nations specialized agency with responsibility for preventing pollution at sea and protecting the lives of seafarers.