ReCAAP ISC published its 3rd quarter piracy report, informing that the Asian region witnessed an increase in the number of incidents during the period January-September 2022 compared to January-September 2021, as 62 incidents of armed robbery against ships were reported during January-September 2022.
Number of incidents
A total of 62 incidents of armed robbery against ships (59 actual and three attempted) were reported in Asia during January-September 2022. No piracy incident was reported.
This accounts for 13% increase in number of incidents compared to January-September 2021. A total of 55 incidents (comprising 52 actual and three attempted incidents) were reported during January-September 2021. Refer to the Appendix on ‘Description of incidents (January-September 2022)’ for details of the incidents.
Areas of Concern
- Increase of incidents in SS: A total of 41 incidents were reported in the SS during January-September 2022. This accounts for 66% of the total number of 62 incidents in Asia. Compared to January-September 2021, there was an increase of 14 incidents in the SS for the same period in 2022.
- Threat of abduction of crew for ransom in Sulu-Celebes Seas: Although no incident of abduction of crew was reported in the Sulu-Celebes Seas during January September 2022, the threat of abduction of crew for ransom in Sulu and Tawi-Tawi remains due to the presence of the remnants of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) in the areas. However, with the improvement of the situation, the Philippine Coast Guard recommended to downgrade the threat assessment level to MODERATE.
Piracy vs armed robbery against ships
All 62 incidents reported in Asia during January-September 2022 were incidents of armed robbery against ships. There was no incident of piracy. Piracy takes place on the high seas while armed robbery against ships takes place in internal waters, archipelagic waters and territorial seas which are under the jurisdiction of the coastal States.
The majority of the incidents reported in Asia are armed robbery against ships. The data of 16-year period of January-September of 2007-2022, indicates that the number of piracy incidents fluctuated each year, with an average of 11% for piracy incidents and 89% for armed robbery against ships.
Significance level of incidents
The 59 actual incidents reported during January-September 2022 were: two CAT 2, 16 CAT 3 and 41 CAT 4 incidents. There was no CAT 1 incident reported during this period.
The majority of the incidents involved perpetrators who were not armed. The perpetrators were not armed/known to be armed in 41 incidents. In the remaining 18 incidents where the perpetrators were armed, one incident involved the crew being threatened, and another incident reported the crew being pushed to the floor and tied up in the engine room. In both incidents, the crew did not suffer any injuries.
Status of Ships
Of the 62 incidents reported during January September 2022, 16 incidents (26%) occurred to ships while at anchor/berth and 46 incidents (74%) occurred to ships while underway.
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Source: ReCAAP ISC
