Anti-piracy measures have contributed considerably in bringing down successful pirate attacks off the Somali coast, said a senior official linked to the UN-backed EU anti-piracy mission off Somalia.
"The number of attacks has gone up; the number of successful attacks has gone down," Captain Paul Chivers, chief of staff of the EU naval forces, told a news conference. "It would be dangerous to assume we have overcome the threat. We need to be careful of complacency."
He said the proposed anti-piracy measures for ships include the registration of the destination and route of the vessels with the international forces operating in the region and other self protection measures designed to prevent pirates from getting on board.
Chivers said that the self protection measures that can be used by ships to prevent pirates from climbing on board included fencing with barbed wire and pieces of wood at ship entries, charged fire hydrants and zig-zagging courses for ships at sea.
"Most of these things, besides barbed wire, are found on ships" Chivers said. "The more a ship is able to deny pirate entry onto their vessel, the quicker we can get a warship or helicopter to them."
Urging merchant ships passing though pirate infested waters to stick to the recommended safety precautions, Chivers noted that most of the ships not targeted by pirates are "almost exclusively those that have best management practices" in place.
The Somali coast, particularity the Gulf of Aden, has been affected by piracy in the recent years. More than 160 pirate attacks have been reported in the waters off Somalia last year. The pirates have managed to hijack at least 34 vessels, and are currently holding some 10 ships and 200 hostages. Generally, the crew and the vessels are returned unharmed on receiving the demanded ransom.
Somalia has been without a functioning government since the fall of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre's government in 1991. Currently, a weak UN-backed interim government under President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed is trying to enforce its authority in the country, most of which is controlled by various Islamist insurgent groups.
Pirate attacks off the Somali coast have continued despite the presence of several warships, deployed by navies of the NATO, the European Union, Russia, China, South Korea and India, in the region to protect cargo and cruise ships against piracy.
The UN Security Council has approved four resolutions since June to promote international efforts in fighting the escalating piracy problem off the coast of Somalia, and has authorized countries engaged in anti-piracy operations off the Somali coast to conduct land and air attacks on Somali pirates after obtaining prior permission from the Somali government.
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