PIRACY 2

PIRACY 2 With the release of the RAK Afrikana ship, held by
Somali pirates with 11 Indian sailors among its crew, the
number of Indians held now now is 53. The 11 sailors have
been transferred to another ship and will be reaching Mombasa
in Kenya tomorrow.
The 53 Indians seized during the capture of five
ships, three of them of with Panamanian flag and one each with
Italian and Maltese flags.
Officials said negotiations were on by the ship owners
in Cairo and in UAE for the release of Indian sailors.
The Indian Ambassador in Cairo, along with envoys of
Sri Lanka and Pakistan, have met with Egyptian authorities in
seeking their good offices on the issue.
Officials said normally the ship owners enter into
negotiations with the pirates in the interest of their sailors
and the merchandise they carry. The pirates also generally do
not not harm the hostages in their own interest of securing
their ransom.
They said the Indian Ambassador in Nairobi, who is
also accredited to Mogadishu, has met the Somalian President
for help in tackling the problem. But the Somalian government
itself could do very little because of the transitional
process they are involved in the last 20 years.
So there is also attempt being made to contact the
elders in the country's community to prevail over the pirates,
they said..