Domestic shipping lines are requesting the Philippine government to increase maritime patrols in the Moro Gulf and in the waters between Zamboanga Peninsula and Basilan amid the recent spate of piracy and hijacking cases in these areas.
Philippine Inter-island Shipping Association (PISA) executive director Pedro Aguilar, in a letter dated January 12, is asking Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, through Maritime Undersecretary Felipe Judan, for “intercession to request the Philippine Navy to participate in patrolling the subject areas to augment the patrols being conducted by the PCG (Philippine Coast Guard) thereat.”
Aguilar said that following the recent attempted attack on MV Ocean Kingdom, owned by PISA member company Oceanic Container Lines, Inc., the group met with PCG officer-in-charge Commodore Joel Garcia to inquire about the agency’s action plan to prevent similar future incidents in the area.
Garcia, Aguilar said, assured them his agency would increase its patrols in the area and may even deploy sea marshals.
Early this year, a firefight ensued between PCG personnel and pirates who attempted to commandeer MV Ocean Kingdom, a cargo vessel travelling from Zamboanga to Davao. The vessel attack occurred 25 nautical miles east of Matanal Point, Sibago Island, Basilan, but was foiled by the joint forces of the PCG, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, and Philippine Navy. Pirates were also suspected to be behind the recent attack of a fishing boat in Zamboanga where eight fishermen were killed.
Aguilar said, however, that while Garcia’s statement was “a bit reassuring,” PISA members were still concerned that PCG “may not sustain its commitment due to its logistical limitations in terms of naval assets [especially] so in the light of the forthcoming Miss Universe event that will be held in the country in the later part of this month.”
The Miss Universe event will run for two weeks starting on Jan 14. Coronation will be held on January 30 at the Mall of Asia arena.
“PCG is surely assigned certain tasks in connection with the holding of the event,” Aguilar pointed out.
He said the group firmly believes that the increased joint presence of the PCG and Philippine Navy in the area is the best solution to the problem.
Aguilar said a member shipping company has already hired armed private security personnel to secure its ships, but pointed out that this is not a practical solution for all ships due to safety consideration. He noted that for tankers, armed private security personnel on board cannot engage pirates in a gun battle because these vessels carry dangerous cargo like highly volatile, explosive, and flammable bulk petroleum products.
He added that hiring armed private security personnel is also costly and would compel ship owners to pass on the cost to their customers.
Since trade between Manila/Visayas and Mindanao and vice versa uses the Zamboanga route as the most efficient transit point, Aguilar said the group “earnestly hope that government will immediately address the [piracy] problem to prevent it from becoming a crisis.”
Aguilar also noted that the alternative route is not safe due to dangerous waves at sea from September to February.
The recently released International Maritime Bureau’s (IMB) annual piracy report for 2016 said kidnappings in the Sulu Sea between eastern Malaysia and the Philippines are a particular concern.
Sulu Sea is located in the southwestern area of the Philippines, separated from the South China Sea in the northwest by Palawan and from the Celebes Sea in the southeast by the Sulu Archipelago.
The report said the kidnapping of crew of ocean-going merchant vessels in the Sulu Sea and their transfer to the southern Philippines represents a notable escalation in attacks. In the last quarter of 2016, about 12 crew members were kidnapped from two cargo vessels at sea and from an anchored fishing vessel, and in November a bulk carrier was fired upon by pirates. Earlier in 2016, crew members were kidnapped in three separate attacks on vulnerable slow-moving tugs and barges.
IMB advised charterers and owners to consider avoiding the Sulu Sea by routing vessels west of Kalimantan. – Roumina Pablo
