PERMANENT SOLUTIONS NEEDED TO COMBAT MARITIME PIRACY

By Sakina Mohamed

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 11 (Bernama) -- The international maritime community has
to realise that assistance by governments through warship policing is only a
temporary solution, said Malaysia's Chief of Navy Admiral Abdul Aziz Jaafar.

He said it has to cooperate and work together to find alternatives to
ensure the safe passage of its vessels in pirate-infested areas like the Gulf of
Aden.

In a recent interview with Bernama, Abdul Aziz said a more permanent
solution required a multi-pronged approach.

"Among others are the addressing of the root cause, which includes
alleviating poverty by providing a more balanced economic situation in the
country.

"In this case, the international effort to help rebuild and reinstate the
security regime in the country is considered vital," he said, referring to the
lack of a viable government in Somalia and the Gulf of Aden piracy cases.

The Gulf of Aden has always been known for piracy. In fact, it has even been
nicknamed "Pirate Alley".

However, the International Maritime Bureau Piracy Reporting Centre head,
Noel Choong, said on Jan 1 that the global economic downturn might just
exacerbate the condition and cause a spike in the number of cases this year.

To date, 44 vessels have been hijacked by pirates in the waterway while 15
are still held in captivity. Malaysian vessels have not been spared the threat.

Malaysia was among the first countries to deploy warships in the gulf
following the hijacking of MISC ships MT Bunga Melati Dua and MT Bunga Melati
Lima on Aug 19 and 29 last year, respectively.

After the release of the two ships about a month later, the Sri Indera Sakti
was deployed in the gulf and has since saved two foreign ships from the pirates.
On Dec 17 last year, it scared off pirates who had already boarded the Chinese
vessel, Zhenhua 4, and on Jan 1 it stopped pirates from boarding the Indian ship
Abul Kalam Azad.

Such rescue operations are undoubtedly costly, but who is bearing the cost?

"In ensuring the safety and security of vessels of national interest, we are
bound to provide necessary assistance as and when directed by the government,"
said Abdul Aziz.

"In this case, ultimately the cost is absorbed by the government through the
RMN."

He said the rescue missions were initiated by the National Security Council
which subsequently directed the Armed Forces to undertake the task.

In the recent rescue operation, Abdul Aziz said, the RMN had been appointed
to take the lead and was assisted by other Armed Forces services, namely the Air
Force, Medical Corps and the Armed Forces Joint Force Headquarters.

He said currently there was no dedicated international body appointed to
coordinate the rescue effort as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the
Sea 1982 stipulates that all warships irrespective of nationalities were obliged
to act on piracy incidents in international waters or the high seas.

Abdul Aziz said piracy threats off the coast of Somalia had been addressed
by the UN through resolutions that called on all parties with the capacity to do
so to take part actively in fighting piracy and armed robbery in the area.

"In other words, the UN has given the mandate to all states to act on such
threats," he said.

Although given the mandate, how equipped is RMN to respond?

Abdul Aziz said the RMN was always prepared in terms of assets and manpower
for such deployment, but logistical constraints might affect sustainability of
the assets employed.

He said there were other domestic operational requirements to be fulfilled,
which limited the number of assets that could be spared for overseas deployment.

"Indeed, it is a huge task for us as it really stretches our resources
almost to the limit.

"We need vessels with greater logistical capabilities such as the Multi-Role
Support Ship that can operate further and sustain continuous operations at sea,"
he said.

Abdul Aziz noted that in the current operation, the RMN was lucky enough
that the area of operation was too far off from available ports within the Gulf
of Aden.

This enabled the ships to remain in the area of operations longer before
coming into ports for restocking of supply.

In tackling piracy cases, Abdul Aziz proposed more cooperative measures in
ensuring optimisation of the assets and available resources committed by the
various nations.

He said there were also legal issues hindering the warships from applying
tougher methods in managing the situation.

"In this regard, certain exceptions may be given to maximize the
effectiveness of their presence," he said.

"A similar arrangement among the littoral states, like the MSP (Melaka
Straits Patrol) in the Straits of Melaka may be a good way ahead, with some
assistance provided by international forces to start with," he added.
-- BERNAMA