Ships anchored at Bangladeshi ports see rising theft incidents: Report
An official says the reported cases are petty theft and stolen goods were recovered
There have been seven incidents of "theft" on ships anchored or berthed at Bangladeshi ports from January to May this year, reports of the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP).
The piracy information group, which has 21 member countries, in its latest report mentioned two attempted thefts during these five months.
Expressing concern over the rise in such incidents in Bangladeshi waters, the organisation noted in its latest report that there was only one such incident during the same period last year.
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The ReCAAP has advised ship operators to follow precautions and called for maintaining communication with port control and law enforcement agencies while entering Bangladeshi waters.
Commodore Mohammad Maqsood Alam, director general of the Department of Shipping, told TBS that the incidents reported by ReCAAP were "not cases of piracy but rather petty thefts."
He mentioned that whenever such incidents occur, the Coast Guard and relevant police stations apprehend the culprits and recover the stolen goods.
Regarding the recent theft incidents, Commodore Alam explained that during the recent border tensions with Myanmar, the country's law enforcement was focused there, which allowed miscreants to take advantage of the situation.
However, efforts are underway to minimise these incidents completely, he added.
The ReCAAP segments incidents into four categories, where lower categories indicate more severe incidents and higher categories denote less severe ones.
Of the nine incidents reported in Bangladesh, three cases were in category 2, one in category 3, and three in category 4. The attempted cases did not fit into any category.
Industry insiders said that while the incidents were not severe, the rise in such events is concerning as they discourage commercial ships from docking at Bangladeshi ports and might result in higher shipping expenses.
Syed Mohammad Arif, chairman of the Bangladesh Shipping Agent Association, told TBS that Bangladesh's image is linked to such incidents.
He said in the past two years the number of robberies or theft had dropped significantly, and efforts should be made to prevent any increase.
Golam Kabir, officer-in-charge of Kutubdia Police Station, informed TBS of one ship robbery and one theft case in the Bay of Bengal in the past six months.
Police arrested about 20 suspects and recovered stolen goods linked to the incidents, he said, adding that organised gangs were involved in these incidents.
In 2006, a report of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) declared Chattogram port as the world's most dangerous port for pirate attacks. There were 47 robbery incidents in the port that year.
However, by January 2012, Bangladesh was removed from the IMB's list for the first time in 20 years, following improved security measures. This led to reductions in charter and insurance premiums for ships.
To enhance security further, Bangladesh imported a Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS) from Sweden in 2013, costing about Tk46 crore. This system includes 46 high-powered infrared video cameras installed across Chattogram port and its surroundings, monitoring a 10 nautical mile boundary.
Subsequently, piracy incidents at Chittagong port decreased.
