Yachts not Piracy target say Asian sailors

by Rob Kothe on 28 Jul 2006 While international cruising sailors have sailed with some trepidation through the Malacca Straits between Indonesia and Malaysia for the last 20 years, the Asian Marine industry says Pirates have been targeting commercial shipping and that leisure vessels are in no danger.

Over the last two weeks Sail-World Cruising has talked and corresponded with cruising sailors and Asian Marine industry professionals on the matter of Piracy.

While many round the world cruising sailors have said they have been apprehensive about transiting the Malacca Straits, the locals with one voice say there is no danger to leisure craft.

The failure of the Piracy Reporting Centre ICC International Maritime Bureau in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to highlight that yachts are not a focus of these incidents in their press releases, came under attack at the Marine Tourism Symposium in KL in 2005 and we re-published Bruce Maxwell’s speech at the Symposium last week. http://www.sail-world.com/indexs.cfm?nid=25706

Sail-World has received feedback from some well known Asian marine identities.

Captain Marty Rijkuris of www.AsianYachting.com comments;

'It is very disturbing that yachts or pleasure craft are included together with commercial shipping reports of piracy. It seems that valuable shipping cargoes or holding captains and officers for huge ransoms are bigger targets, as they provide better pickings for the pirates. I cannot recall any yachts being pirated in the last ten years or more, other than some stolen items missing from boats in port.

'Most yachts making their way either up or down the Malacca Straits keep to the Malaysian side of the main shipping lanes amongst the coastal fishermen, and prefer to stop at the marinas along the way.

'The length and breadth of the Malacca Straits are now monitored by radar stations built strategically along the Malaysian and Singaporean coasts that can be used for radio check in as you pass by. The Malaysian Marine Department have an emergency phone number +603 31695201 to contact and a rescue can be organised anywhere in Malaysian waters, including the East Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah.

'It is hard to estimate, but hundreds of yachts ply the Malacca Straits each year and the biggest problems faced to date is being run over by ships if they stray into the shipping lanes, when skippers and crew have fallen asleep or not keeping a proper watch and of course the weather.'

Still its clear not everyone is convinced. 'The American crusiing sailors are a little more paranoid and tend to travel in groups and choose to carry Canadian flags so as not to be identified from the US in predominately Muslim countries.’

Allan Riches of Brunei Bay Radio; ‘The information that I've heard is the vessels that are hijacked are those loaded with easily cashed cargoes. They especially like small petroleum tankers that can be taken into small Indonesian ports. Yachts and similar recreational vessels HAVE NOT been attached in this organised criminal activity and it's important to highlight this.'

Riches believes leisure vessels are not targets ‘probably because it's not easy to sell yacht parts (especially in Indonesia), the items on a yacht are relatively easy to trace and recognise (especially compared to 20l of diesel), and the amount of money on board is minimal.'

Riches continues, ‘Apparently most of the piracy occurs within or just outside the Indonesian border in the Straits of Malacca. There is no 'Hot Pursuit' agreement between Indonesia and the other countries - Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, so their police or military cannot pursue the stolen vessels, or the pirate boats, back into Indonesian territory at the time of the incident.’ Brunei Bay Radio: www.bruneibay.net

Cdr John Ferguson, the General Manager of the Royal Selangor Yacht Club in Malaysia points out; ‘There have been no recorded piracy threats to recreational craft in the area for many years and cruising is both safe and enjoyable, certainly in Singapore and Malaysian waters.’

Donald Laird from Simpson Marine adds, ‘I have been living and working in the leisure marine industry in SE Asia for ten years, mostly based in Singapore but also Langkawi and Phuket.

'In all that time, which has included about eight trips North or South in the Malacca Straits, I have only had one first hand account of an unpleasant incident involving 'pirates' and that happened to a sailing boat travelling from Jakarta to Singapore at least 12 years ago.

'If yachts stick to the Malaysian side of the Malacca Straits and employ simple common sense they have nothing to worry about other than getting caught in a net, at which point a wholehearted apology, a carton of cigarettes and a sense of humour will resolve any difficulty.

'Far more alarming and threatening than any pirates are the routine ferocious thunder and lightning storms.’

Given the general concern that the PRC press releases are still managing to produce for the leisure marine industry, Sail-World Cruising has asked the PRC a number of questions and is awaiting a response.

We close this story with worlds from Klaus Hympendahl website www.yachtpiracy.org/en/

'The waters surrounding Indonesia and the Philippines and the China Sea, belong to a region where piracy has been a tradition for hundreds if not thousands of years. Some yachtsmen have been sailing here for years and not seen a pirate.

'Still in the Southern Philippine islands of the Sulu Sea, Moslem Tausang and rebels of the Abu Sayaf are fighting for their rights and their independence against Christian Philippine military units. One should avoid this particular area.

'A new area of insecurity for sailors is the high sea south of Indonesia. It is reported that four yachts have had contact with fishing boats on their way from Australia to South Africa. Some yachts have been hindered by boats deliberately moving onto a collision course, others have been pursued during the night.

'An area of questionable reputation is the Karimata Strait in Indonesia and it’s northern extension, the ill-reputed Malacca Strait where professional pirates concentrate their business mainly on commercial ships. But no report of yacht piracy lately has been reported.

'It seems that Asian waters are far safer than their reputation.'

We were very pleased with the feedback on our previous articles on this subject and do urge further comments.