Reporting Maritime Attacks in Southeast Asia: A Survey of Actors, Roles and Challenges

Introduction

Because of the presence of functioning governments and effective law enforcement agencies in the region, piracy and armed robbery in Southeast Asia cannot be said to be as severe as that in the Horn of Africa. Nevertheless, the increasing numbers, the evolving tactics, as well as the transnational nature of the incidents over the years, signal the need for greater attention and resources to combat and prevent maritime attacks in the region.

As such, while governments remain at the forefront against piracy and armed robbery, the increasing roles of regional organizations and private security companies bear significant consideration because they complement and supplement existing law enforcement efforts. Specifically, they operate critical reporting systems – which provide the necessary information and analyses for law enforcement agencies and ship owners, to ensure safer maritime navigation for ships and seafarers in the region. These include the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre in Kuala Lumpur and the ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre in Singapore as well as the private intelligence services offered by various companies, within the backdrop of the activities of the IMO and other organizations such as UKMTO and MSC-HOA operating elsewhere in the world.

In past two seminars, Mr. Karsten von Hoesslin talked about the problem of piracy and armed robbery in Southeast Asia, in comparison to the situation in the Horn of Africa as well as the current trends and developments. In this final seminar, he discussed the significant role, especially in the area of reporting incidents, that governments, regional organizations and private security companies could play, including the challenges they faced, to enhance maritime security in the region.

About the Speaker

Karsten is a Senior Analyst with Risk Intelligence as well as a Visiting Fellow with the Centre for International Law, University of Singapore. His research and interests cover both conventional and unconventional maritime security issues in the East and West African region as well as South East Asia with emphasis on syndicated criminal organizations, piracy, and trafficking (arms, drugs, and human) tactics and organizations. Karsten has written extensively on both Somali piracy as well as maritime security issues in South East Asia and has also presented at a number of international conferences on piracy, transnational crime, maritime law, boundary delimitation, and naval issues. Karsten holds a Masters in Strategic Studies and is also currently completing his PhD. Karsten has also served temporary postings at the United Nations International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) and the International Maritime Organization (IMO), on the Executive Board for the Canadian Consortium on Asia Pacific Security and Chaired its Maritime Security Task Group. Currently Karsten is an active member in the Maritime Security Working Group and the Transnational Crime Group with the Council for Security Cooperation in Asia Pacific (CSCAP) and its Canadian Delegation.