Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly XLIV
ASEAN: Piracy in the Singapore Strait and the Strait of Malacca
Topic 003: Piracy in the Singapore Strait and the Strait of
Malacca
Section 1: Background Information
Over the course of the past years especially in the twenty first century, piracy has been thrust
into the forefront of the international community’s attention. 2008 has seen the number of
pirate attacks on commercial vessels skyrocket to levels unseen for hundreds of years. At the
same time, the sophistication, complexity and capability of pirates has increased, leading to
the captures of larger and ever more important vessels. Awareness to the situation of piracy
was brought to the attention of the global community particularly after the rise of the pirates
from Somalia1 . Somalia is a nation which is in political and economic instability, with a large
coastline jutting out into the Indian Ocean’s major shipping routes2. This situation is now
being replicated in the Strait of Malacca, just 30 miles off the coast of Malaysia3 . However,
instead of pirates operating in small-time gangs from their coastal villages, the crews stealing
cargoes of liquid fuel are highly organized criminal enterprises that gather intelligence,
coordinate attacks, work in discrete teams, sometimes have their own tankers, and sell what
1
Kriel, R., & Duggan, B. (2015, November 24). Somali pirates seize Iranian, Thai ships. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from ​
http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/23/world/somalia­piracy/ 2
Ibanez, F. (2013, August 25). Analysis of the Somali pirate attacks in the Indian Ocean | SAFETY4SEA. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.safety4sea.com/somali­piracy­indian­ocean/ 3
Wikimedia. (n.d.). Strait of Malacca. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strait_of_Malacca Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly XLIV
ASEAN: Piracy in the Singapore Strait and the Strait of Malacca
they steal to big-time, pre-arranged buyers4 . It is a lucrative business arrangement.
Figure 1: A graph showing the increase of pirate attacks in and around Singapore from 2009 - 2013.
Furthermore, this type of pirate rarely takes hostages, as the value of the tankers
unfortunately far outweighs the value of the hostages. Piracy in the Malacca Strait accounted
for 40% of the piracy worldwide in 2004, which shows this trend had begun before the
Somali pirates made headlines. While piracy in and around Somalia has decreased
exponentially, piracy globally should be a concern. Many village communities who live along
the coastline in tropical countries are struggling to support themselves as busy trade routes
moved away, overfishing increases, and foreign fishing boats have plundered the remaining
sea-life. They are now being forced into piracy because they have no other access to means
of supporting themselves.
Overview
4
Kemp, T. (2014, September 15). Dangerous waters: Meet the new face of piracy. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from ​
http://www.cnbc.com/2014/09/15/worlds­most­pirated­waters.html Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly XLIV
ASEAN: Piracy in the Singapore Strait and the Strait of Malacca
A third of the world’s shipping moves through the Singapore Strait along with the
Strait of Malacca. Nearly all of the crude oil that moves between the Persian Gulf to
major Asian economies such as China, Japan, and South Korea move through this area.
About 130,000 vessels arrive in Singapore annually, which leads to estimates by experts
stating that a ships enters the strait every 4 minutes.5 The bottleneck in that area, at
only 1.7 miles wide at its narrowest point is only growing, and has no signs of slowing
down. From a financial standpoint, it is logical that piracy in this area would only
increase, especially due to the rising prices in oil globally. The Strait of Malacca is
generally a region which is heavily used for commercial trade between China and India.
To make the region even more susceptible to piracy, it has thousands of inlets, and is
an outlet for many rivers, making it ideal for pirates to hide in to evade capture.
Figure 2: Above is a map of the recorded pirate attacks in the Strait of Malacca. The attacks mainly takes
place just off of Singapore, as well as in and around Malaysia.
5
CSIS. (2015). Atlas | Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://amti.csis.org/atlas/ Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly XLIV
ASEAN: Piracy in the Singapore Strait and the Strait of Malacca
Section 2: Past Actions and Important Incidents
The US Maritime Administration (MARAD) distinguishes terrorism from piracy, and piracy
from shore gangs who robs ships. MARAD6 has been involved in working with other
Federal agencies, particularly the US Coast Guard and the Department of State to address
the risks and develop strategies to protect commercial shipping.
Existing Legal Framework
Figure 3:7 Map of guidelines regarding past UNCLOS applications
The first internationally agreed definition of piracy was adopted in 1958 with the
Convention on the High Seas8 signed in Geneva. The most important document
however, by far, is the one codifying international law regarding piracy, the ​
United
6
Maritime Administration. (2010). Anti­Piracy – MARAD. Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.marad.dot.gov/environment­and­safety/office­of­security/anti­piracy/ 7
Seabed Mapping International. (2003). Summary Interpretation of UNCLOS Article 76. Retrieved February 21, 2016, from ​
http://www.seabedmapping.com/unclos­article­summary.html 8
Treves, T. (1958, April 29). 1958 Geneva Conventions on the Law of the Sea ­ Main Page. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from ​
http://legal.un.org/avl/ha/gclos/gclos.html Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly XLIV
ASEAN: Piracy in the Singapore Strait and the Strait of Malacca
Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS)9 signed in 1982. The
document otherwise known as the Law of the Sea Convention or the Law of the Sea10
treaty defines the rights and responsibilities of nations with respect to their use of the
world’s oceans, establishes guidelines for businesses, the environment, and the
management of marine natural resources. While the Secretary General of the UN
receives instruments of accession in the UN provides support for meeting of states
party to the Convention, the UN has no direct operational role in the implementation
of the Convention.
Previous actions developed by MARAD
Measures such as the Development of “Best Management Practise to Combat Piracy”
have been developed and implemented by shipping organizations. Furthermore,
international development and acceptance of International Maritime Organization has
lead to advice being given to flag states and member of the industry to help prevent
successful pirate attacks. The development and implementation of US Coast Guard
Maritime security directives which provide shipping companies with specific risk-based
measure to deter, detect and disrupt piracy were also successfully implemented along
the Horn of Africa11. MARAD was also instrumental in helping to organize support of
international navies including the Combined Maritime Force vessels (CTF-151, NATO,
EU NAVFOR) and vessels from other navies to increase the naval presence in the
region and are patrolling and escorting vessels in the Horn of Africa Region.
Section 3: Possible Solutions
9
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.dfo­mpo.gc.ca/international/media/bk_unclos­eng.htm 10
Wikimedia. (1958). United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Retrieved February 21, 2016, from ​
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Convention_on_the_Law_of_the_Sea 11
Maritime Administration. (2014). Anti­Piracy (Horn of Africa). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.marad.dot.gov/newsroom/news_item/anti­piracy­horn­of­africa/ Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly XLIV
ASEAN: Piracy in the Singapore Strait and the Strait of Malacca
Some observers argue that there is not singular problem of violence at sea, but rather a
collection of problems; where different kinds of violence require a myriad of different
defence systems12. The most common solutions would be the ones previously used in the
Horn of Africa, but one should not the difference in motives. Piracy is no longer a matter of
survival for the people in the Strait of Malacca; it has developed into an extremely lucrative
business with high return levels of profit instead of a small-time business.
Questions to Consider:
1. What is the root cause of piracy off the coast of Singapore? Should we address the issue
of poverty in some South East Asian nations, or piracy first? How should the UN deal
with the economic side effects of global piracy in general?
2. The violence in these straits has the potential to effect the territorial disputes in the
South China Sea. How will the international community deal with these issues?
3. Should the UN cooperate with the ASEAN and NATO natal initiatives in the region?
Should there be a new international maritime force that will combat piracy in the
region? If so, how or in what way?
4. How should the international community address the rising level of piracy occurring
worldwide?
5. How should the UN deal with the legal and jurisdictional regarding the status of
captured pirated? How, where, and by whom should captured pirates be tried? What
should be the legal status of pirates?
References
CSIS. (2015). Atlas | Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from ​
http://amti.csis.org/atlas/ Ibanez, F. (2013, August 25). Analysis of the Somali pirate attacks in the Indian Ocean | SAFETY4SEA. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.safety4sea.com/somali­piracy­indian­ocean/ ​
"The MARAD View of Maritime Pirac", ​
Piracy at Sea: The Modern Challenge(​
presentation), Woods Hole, ​
MA​
: Marine Policy and Ocean Management Workshop, 24 April 1985. 12
Southern Ontario Model United Nations Assembly XLIV
ASEAN: Piracy in the Singapore Strait and the Strait of Malacca
Kemp, T. (2014, September 15). Dangerous waters: Meet the new face of piracy. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.cnbc.com/2014/09/15/worlds­most­pirated­waters.html Kriel, R., & Duggan, B. (2015, November 24). Somali pirates seize Iranian, Thai ships. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/23/world/somalia­piracy/ MacDonald, F., Toscano, D., Berberich, S., & Monaghan, T. (2013). ​
Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice 17 ­ 21 March ­ Conference A 24 ­ 28 March ­ Conference B COLLEGIATE CONFERENCE NATIONAL associationTM NMUN • NY nmun.org BACKGROUND GUIDE 2013​
[Scholarly project]. In NMUN​
. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.nmun.org/ny_archives/ny13_downloads/BGG13CCPCJ.pdf Maritime Administration. (2010). Anti­Piracy – MARAD. Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.marad.dot.gov/environment­and­safety/office­of­security/anti­piracy/ Maritime Administration. (2014). Anti­Piracy (Horn of Africa). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.marad.dot.gov/newsroom/news_item/anti­piracy­horn­of­africa/ Treves, T. (1958, April 29). 1958 Geneva Conventions on the Law of the Sea ­ Main Page. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from ​
http://legal.un.org/avl/ha/gclos/gclos.html United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2016, from ​
http://www.dfo­mpo.gc.ca/international/media/bk_unclos­eng.htm Wikimedia. (n.d.). Strait of Malacca. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strait_of_Malacca Wikimedia. (1958). United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Retrieved February 21, 2016, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Convention_on_the_Law_of_the_Se
a "The MARAD View of Maritime Piracy", ​
Piracy at Sea: The Modern Challenge​
(presentation), Woods Hole, ​
MA​
: Marine Policy and Ocean Management Workshop, 24 April 1985.