In 2012, there were 62 incidents reported and 10 vessels hijacked. In 2013, there were 51 incidents and seven ships taken. In 2014, there were 41 incidents and five vessels hijacked, including one seized by Nigerian pirates and moved back up to the Gulf of Guinea. In 2015, there were 28 incidents with only two vessels hijacked. This year, there have been three vessels taken among 45 incidents, including a raid by looters recently on the 1,708-teu Windhoek (built 2009) off Conakry, Guinea. The crew was briefly taken hostage but unharmed.

Ships have been hijacked for their cargoes, with some panamax tankers missing for days at a time, but now “those behind the attacks realise there is also a value in kidnapping the crew”, Howlett says, with a dramatic increase in the number of crew taken hostage.

“There also seems to be a lot of violence to the crew compared to other parts of the world,” Howlett said.

Under-reporting issue

Under-reporting is a problem, with known attacks not included in statistics until confirmed by owners. A correlation also has been noted between spikes in the number of attacks and local election times.

The good news is that a secure anchorage area has been in place since 2013, with the involvement of the Nigerian navy and other authorities.

Indonesia is also an area of concern, although there have been no hijackings.

“The majority of incidents are low-level thefts but they still need to be dealt with,” Howlett said.

There are now 11 designated anchorages patrolled by the Indonesian marine police, with a consequent decline in the number of reported incidents.

The situation in Southeast Asia is more serious.

“There were a lot of hijackings in 2014 and 2015 but this didn’t make the press like the Somali hijackings,” Howlett said.

The attacks were against local coastal products tankers, typically no larger than 5,000 dwt, but were averaging one hijack every two weeks between April 2014 and June 2015.

The gangs deliberately targeted the ships for their gasoil cargoes. But not much action was taken.

“There is a market for this sort of tactic,” Howlett said, again urging the importance of robust response.

In June 2015, the 7,301-dwt tanker Orkim Harmony (built 2009) was captured but the Vietnamese navy succeeded in putting that gang out of circulation. A two-week cycle then ceased, with no further incidents until August, when another products tanker, the 3,421-dwt MT Joaquim (built 1995), was taken. However, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency managed to board the vessel and capture the gang.

The bandits who hijacked another tanker, the 1,138-dwt Sun Birdie (built 1993), were given 10-year jail terms and one stroke of the rotan (cane).

“This is exactly the type of action needed,” Howlett said.

Year of no hijackings

There were no incidents between last summer and May this year, when yet another products tanker was hijacked but soon recovered by the Indonesian authourites.

“Hijacked ships need to be intercepted and recovered as soon as possible,” stressed Howlett, adding that bigger problems will emerge if prompt action is not taken.

“Although the tankers targeted in Southeast Asia were small, they were gradually getting larger.”

There have also been reports of hijackings in the Sulu Sea in south-western Philippines, with vessels passed on to “certain terrorist groups”, but the activity is localised and only affects tugs and barges, not oceangoing ships.

Despite that, Howlett says Southeast Asia is a complex environment and “if left unchecked, it will continue and definitely disrupt trade”.