Indians held hostage
Even after six of the Indians held onboard the MV Suez ship were released, it is calculated that there may be as many as 39 Indians still being held hostage by Somali pirates.
An Indian Government source stated that “Somali piracy is a global challenge and menace, which requires a well-coordinated response by the international community”, adding that “there have been 165 incidents, including 45 hijackings by the pirates, who still hold over 550 people of various nationalities hostage.”
The source said that “We have been providing security to all our merchant ships. Indians in custody of the pirates are those who were on board ships belonging to other countries.”
According to source, the Indian Government cannot provide security to every single sailor and what is required is a global coalition against piracy along similar lines to the one against terrorism.
Underlining that government cannot pay ransom for sailors, the source stated that “If we pay a ransom for one, then all Indian sailors will become sitting ducks for pirates as they will know that the Government will pay.”
——-
