Danica White 1 June 22 August 2007

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Terence Eaton
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1 1 June 22 August 2007 INTERTANKO FORUM ON PIRACY AND ARMED ROBBERY Singapore Monday, 5 November 2007

2 Protocol Hans Tino Hansen Executive Partner & Managing Director Protocol

3 Protocol Protocol is a private intelligence company focusing on piracy, terrorism, organised crime and insurgency A majority of products and services are related to maritime security - shipping and offshore sectors Protocol produces intelligence reports and threat/risk assessments as well as management consulting on threats as well as on responses and counter-measures Clients includes shipowners, shipowners associations, ship management companies, offshore supply, contruction and drilling companies, consulting, classification, underwriters and war risk, maritime authorities, ministries, defence and intelligence services

4 The Threat: IMB Live Piracy Map 2007 Red attacks Yellow attempted attacks

5 Status incidents during first 9 months 9 confirmed highjackings during first 9 months 17 attempted attacks during first 9 months

6 Latest developments OCT an 10m loading vessel (no name) was reportedly highjacked near Brava OCT at 0805 LT "MV Rabbana" was chased and fired upon by a speed boat. (IMB) OCT at 1000 UTC "MV Maria" was chased by two speed boats and fired upon. (IMB) OCT the MV Al Marjan near Brava (highjacked and sailed to a position between Hobyo and Harardhere) OCT MV Jaikur II 60 NM off the coast of Brava (attempted attack) OCT MV Golden Nori Japanese-owned chemical tanker near Puntland in the Gulf of Aden (attacked and highjacked). Two pirate skiffs destroyed by US navy. First time coalition forces attempt to intervene in Somali territorial waters

7 Latest developments October North Korean cargo ship 60 nm northeast of Mogadishu (attacked by pirates who took control of the vessel the crew counter-attacked and gained control of steering and engineering spaces, while the pirates were in control of the bridge. US destroyer USS James E. Williams came to support and sent a boarding team, which assisted 3 severely wounded crew members. Initial reports says that 5 pirates are captured and 2 dead) 8. South Korean-owned trawlers Mavuno I and II has been released 4 November after being highjacked 15 May

8 Danica White background - Protocol This case study is based upon the information made available in Danish and international media, sources within the stakeholders as well as sources in Somalia, Kenya and in the Middle East and from international partners Protocol was not directly involved with the owners but has supported relevant authorities Protocol monitored the highjacking and was also used as expert commentators by Danish and international media

9 Danica White the vessel, owner and crew The Danica White is a small general cargo ship with an average top speed of 10 knots The owner H. Folmer A/S was probably the last Danish shipowner to retain Danish flagged vessels with all-danish crew The owner had recently lost its certificate (ISM) and had transferred the management of the fleet to the Danish shipmanagement company Erria A/S The crew was 5 people with one experienced captain Niels Henze Nielsen (56), one experienced junior officer Tage Kramer, one experienced seaman and unexperienced Kim Lassen (18) and Jens Peter Skov (26). The crew was supposed to have been replaced in Mombassa, their point of destination

10 Danica White the voyage and cargo The voyage was from Sharjah in UAE to Mombassa, Kenya

11 Danica White the cargo The cargo was according to media reports and to the shipowner construction materials. Danish media later questioned this and indicated that it had been carrying weapons or ammunition. However, even if the shipowner is known to transport weapons and explosives, this was not the case on this trip Protocol analysed this question with relevant sources, who stated that this specific issue had been checked with a negative outcome The cargo was among other things drilling equipment for contruction purposes

The highjacking The highjacking took place 210 NM from the Somalia coast 1 June 10.

12 The highjacking The highjacking took place 210 NM from the Somalia coast 1 June local time Three open white motorboats had unnoticed approached the ship according to the Captain Niels Hentze Nielsen pirates in three white open motorboats attacked the vessel and entered the ship from starboard One motorboat was 8-10 m with an inboard engine while the two others were 5-6 m with 25 horsepower outboard engines

13 The highjacking The second officer Tage Kramer was resting in his cabin and Captain Nielsen had the ship on autopilot The captain was working with paperwork and was about to telex the ships position The shipowner had not been in contact with the vessel since Thursday 31 May in the evening The two young seamen were cleaning inside the vessel The captain heard a lot of noice and thought it was the two seamen playing and making games Then he heard a bang and initially thought it was a supersonic airplane overflying the ship, but then he heard more shooting and suddenly he saw several pirates outside the bridge where they tried to force entry through door

14 The highjacking The pirates came running through the door, but because of the condensed water from the aircondition all the pirates fell on the floor of the bridge like in a cartoon movie The Captain pushed the SSAS alarm put this was never received in Danish Navy Operational Command centre The low freeboard and low speed (only making 5-6 knots) made DW an easy target (also, there was no watch at the time of the attack) The US CENTCOM Navy contacted the owner and then only after that the Danish authorities were alarmed Ritzau and Berlingske Tidende 2 September 2007

shoot in front of the vessel The pirates put up the crew as human shields Having no option

15 On the way to territorial waters they were called to stop by the USS Carter Hall a Harpers Ferry dock landing ship When Danica White would not answer their calls they started to shoot in front of the vessel The pirates put up the crew as human shields Having no option to free the crew, the USS Carter Hall fired on the three motorboats/skifs and put them on fire

16 Danica White was anchored outside the city of Hobyo, 300 km north of Mogadishu A demand was presented to the owners of 1,5 mio. USD

17 The Captivity The crew was treated relatively OK according to the circumstances, however all valuables belonging to the crew were stolen Among the pirates there were people who were relatively decent and which the crew could communicate with, but there were others who seemed very dangerous and who threatened the crew on a regular basis e.g. maybe we will kill you The two young seamen started playing monopoly with the pirates and even if the pirates did not know the Danish adresses in the game they did understand what fængsel (prison) meant. The two young Danes did cheat the pirates and they stopped playing when they understood this.

They were given water and food for the duration of the captivity Twice members of the crew were brought into land one time the captain and one time the captain and a

18 They were given water and food for the duration of the captivity Twice members of the crew were brought into land one time the captain and one time the captain and a crew member, where they were held hostage at a compound in the Harardhere region The reason may have been to make any military action by special forces much more difficult

19 Danica White was moved a couple of times, one time it moved next to the highjacked Korean-owned trawler Mavuno (I or II) to get fresh water supplies The threats were clearly targeted against the captain, who was asked how people were burried in Denmark etc. All four ships were at anchor in the same area outside Hobyo Quite extraordinary the crew was allowed to call their relatives The ship was totally cleaned for any effect of any value including parts of the cargo Interview with the captain BT 30 August 2007 and other sources

20 Involved parties: H. Folmer A/S the shipowner, supported by SKULD the P&I club Codan the Hull insurer The cargo owner Danish Government Task Force Headed by Danish MFA Piratgruppen (PET) supported by Piratgruppen (FE) Danish Navy Operational Command Danish Maritime Authority Rigspolitiet (Danish National Police)

21 The negotiations H. Folmer and its two insurance companies hired Control Risks to undertake the negotiations Some time was spent defining and setting up communication between the pirates and the negotiators In general, since there have been several killings in Somalia of people who have been middlemen or people who have been seen as showing too much interest in the highjackings, very few people are now willing to assist in these matters According to our information the first reply was to pay USD

22 The negotiations According to the information published by Danish newspaper BT the pirates were very annoyed about the USD reply They took a new step by forcing the captain to call directly to the head of the Danish MFA Task Force, who would not parttake directly in the negotiations (a phonenumber supplied by the head of the Somali Association in Denmark) Since the MFA would not give in they took an unprecedented step to command the captain to send an on 24 June to the Danish newspaper BT, which revealed the situation and the current state of the negotiations After consultations with the Danish MFA and Protocol, BT choose not to publish the full text (the ransom) on 25 June

23 The negotiations A lot of attention was directed by Danish media to the fact that the owners only had about 1,5 mio DKK in net capital and apparently could not pay the ransom On 21 July BT published the ransom demand and other details and the owner was cited not being able to pay the ransom Our sources had indicated that a solution which included all four stakeholders The Seafarers Union 3F offered to pay the full ransom and demanded influence on the negotiations something they were denied However, the union was allowed to be a party in the coordinating group

24 The ransom The ransom paid was below 50% of the ransom demand and was close to USD The ransom was paid cash through delivery in Dubai at a hotel Similar procedure as in several previous cases in 2005 and 2006

25 The military option contingency planning Danish Navy Special Forces Frømandskorpset planned for a rescue operation as an option for decision-makers A sister ship of Danica White was reserved for operational training in Denmark

26 The release: The crew and ship was released on 22 August 1625 CEST The crew sailed the ship, which could now only do 6,5 knots, to international waters, where they were met by the French Navy Corvette Commandant Blaison which also carried Danish Navy officers and representatives of the Danish MFA

27 French Navy RIB with two Danish sailors on the way back to Cmdt Blaison The Danish sailors arrives at Stern of the Cmdt Blaison

28 With the crew except for one member back on the vessel, the Blaison escorted Danica White to Djibouti, where it was expected to arrive Wednesday 29 Due to the very low speed the crew may be moved onto the Blaison and sailed to Djibouti

The release: The crew was taken over into the French warship and sailed to Djibouti from where a team headed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs received them They were

29 The release: The crew was taken over into the French warship and sailed to Djibouti from where a team headed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs received them They were after one day in Djibouti put on a special chartered Challenger airplane and flew to Odense Airport in Denmark, where they landed without any contacts to the media on 28 August

30 Initial aftermath Plans by the Seafarers Association to bring the Shipowner, H. Folmer A/S to court for compensation Demands by the Seafarers Association for a mutual coverage against piracy Theoretical discussions on when to pay or not to pay ransoms in Danish media and by statements of some politicians Statement of Mr. Bent Bendtsen, Minister of Economics, to coordinate all relevant authorities to produce a new strategy

31 Aftermath Criticism of Control Risk Group negotiating by other experienced negotiators in the area should be seen in perspective Criticism on the size of the ransom, that it could fuel further highjackings sum not unseen before Widely spread misunderstanding especially in Dubai and in Mombassa shipping circles that the Danish government paid the ransom important to underline that the government was not involved in the financing of the ransom

deploy a frigate Operational deployment to the Task Force

32 Aftermath Discussions by politicians to deploy Danish naval vessels to the area one suggestion to permanently deploy a frigate Operational deployment to the Task Force 150 by the Royal Danish Navy has been planned but not yet approved

33 Where do the Danica White highjacking differ? 1. Danica White was a unique vessel in many respects: A. All-Danish i.e. white European crew B. Danish flag C. Small old-fashioned shipowner with absolutely no contingency planning for such crisis/incident 2. Pirates used unseen (for Somalia) PR and pressure approach A. Use of s and direct phone calls to relatives and to MFA 3. Complicated stakeholder setup 4. Financial situation of the shipowner 5. Huge media attention in home country

34 Protocol Workshop Protocol Workshop on Maritime Security Threats Piracy, Organised Crime, Insurgency and Terrorism Tomorrow Tuesday 6 November Grand Plaza Park Hotel City Hall 795 SGD for INTERTANKO members Registration possible

Piracy the curse of maritime transport

Piracy the curse of maritime transport Seminar on piracy and armed robbery at sea organised by the European Commission (DG MOVE) in cooperation with the Danish Presidency of the Council of the EU 28 &