Hammering on about a single theme can get mighty boring at times, but in a case concerning the security of international oil shipments the hammering obviously has to continue.
That’s because fears of a terrorist attack in the vital Malacca Straits were revived last week when a gang of 35 pirates armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenade launchers seized a tanker believed to be carrying methanol in the waterway.
The 1,289-tonne Indonesian-owned MT Tri Samudra was steaming from Samarinda in Kalimantan province on Borneo Island to Belawan on Sumatra Island when it was boarded in the evening of Mar. 12.
“The pirates attacked the ship as it was heading towards Belawan and ordered it to sail to Dumai (also in Sumatra). During the journey to Dumai the captain and chief engineer were kidnapped and taken off the ship,” said Noel Choong, regional manager of the Piracy Reporting Center of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB).
The ship’s owners believe the pirates were rebels from the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), which has been fighting for independence for Aceh province in the north of Sumatra Island, Choong said.
Pirates or terrorists?
The owners had headed their report to the IMB “Pirate attack/terrorist,” Choong said.
“If this is a terrorist attack it will have severe consequences on the security of the ports in the region. It looks like they (pirates) are becoming very daring, and they are moving away from the normal coastal attacks towards the open sea and towards Malaysian waters,” he added.
The Malacca Strait, one of the world’s busiest waterways, has long been a haunt of Indonesian pirates, and fears have been expressed that international terrorists could team up with pirates to seize a ship and launch an attack on a port or other ships.
“This type of vessel is ideal for terrorist acts because of its size and shallow draft,” said one shipping expert. “It can go to many intended targets, including ports and refineries and cause explosions.”
Limited help
Despite the attack and the danger it represents, Indonesia has reiterated its opposition to foreign militaries helping to guard the Malacca Strait against terrorist attacks.
“Our stand is that other international stakeholders should help in information and intelligence sharing, but not to send military patrols,” said Vice Admiral I Wayan Rampih Argawa, deputy chief of staff of the Indonesian navy.
He said Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia were already conducting coordinated naval patrols in the area and there was no need for an outside power to get involved.
The waters in the Malacca Strait are “within the jurisdiction of the coastal states, and to send (an outside) military power there, we will not allow that,” he said.
Perhaps not, but one wonders how anyone can put national pride before international security given the near-catastrophe of last week’s hijacking.
Clearly, Indonesia prefers loss of security to loss of face. ✦