September 29, 2011 marked the 34th World Maritime Day by the International Maritime Organization. This year's theme is "Piracy: orchestrating the response."
"No effort should be spared" to alleviate the worldwide rampant piracy, said IMO Secretary-General Efthimios E. Mitropoulos. He implored shipping companies to "rigorously" implement Best Management Practices and governments to "back up" their frequently repeated concerns by deploying appropriate military and technological resources for the scope of the problem.
While he implored ships' crews to do their part, no mention was made on the subject of them being provided armed security guards.
According to the International Maritime Bureau, there are presently 277 seafarers held hostage by Somali pirates and 346 attacks so far this year. In 2010, 1,090 people were taken hostage-516 were used as human shields-and 488 persons reportedly suffered serious physical or psychological abuse.
Source: gCaptain.com
Category: International Maritime Injury Claims
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