public confidence in the authorities has grown as corrupt policemen are being weeded out and jailed for long terms. ‘There are no longer any free zones for FARC or ELN to play in,’ stated one kidnap negotiator with long experi- ence in the country. Even the level of homicides has fallen in Medellin, the long-time murder capital of Colombia. Meanwhile, the Colombian army has claimed that during 2010 it killed or captured some 2,500members of FARC.
A ransom to be delivered to pirates Source: Compass Risk Management,
www.compass-rm.com
supermarkets or stopped at roadblocks, and then taken at gunpoint to ATMs to empty their bank accounts. The chance of detection by the authorities is slim. The actual number of kidnappings in
Venezuela is unknown as the figures are reportedly suppressed by the gov- ernment of President Hugo Chavez and his controlled press. In Sao Paulo, Brazil, the street gangs specialise in express kidnappings but, as the country is due to host the footballWorld Cup in 2014, the government is desperate to keep the true level of violence in its cities out of the glare of the global media. Meanwhile, a new kidnapping
variant has emerged in the smart restaurant areas of several Latin American cities. ‘Restaurant kidnap- pings’ were first seen in Venezuela. Gangs target restaurants, observe diners, enter and then pass a message to their prey at the table that their lives are in danger if payment isn’t made immediately at a nearby ATM. Despite the new threats from gang
offshoots of the disbanded United Self Defence Forces of Colombia (the AUC), such as Aguilas Negras, that now operate in the densely-wooded border lands between Colombia and Venezuela, the security climate in Colombia has actually improved for both foreigners and nationals. During 2010 there were 228 kidnappings in Colombia, including three foreigners – a much reduced number compared to previous years. Since the government took on the two largest guerrilla and kidnapping groups – the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN) –
Danger warning More recently, on the African continent the threat levels are rising as a result of the pan-Arab revolutions that have convulsed the north. With the aim of wrecking oil and gas infrastructure and destabilising oil revenues across the vast Maghreb region, terror groups such as the Al Qaeda in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) may want to expand territorial reach. In the past the group has concentrated its activi- ties in Algeria, Mali, Mauretania and Niger, but there are now fears it could expand its operations eastwards to Libya as oil companies continue to evacuate staff from the country’s oil operations and facilities are left less secure from attack. AQIM has a track record of kidnap-
ping. In recent months two Frenchmen were taken from a restaurant in Niamey, Niger’s capital, and later mur- dered, while an Italian woman was kid- napped in Algeria. In the DRC – the Congo – other groups threaten the mining companies. For example, a South African working for a private security company contracted to SOCO, the UK-based exploration independent with interests in Vietnam, Angola and Congo, was kidnapped while working at an exploration block near Virunga National Park. In the Sudan, a number of aid and UN contractors have also been taken. Further south, there has been no dis-
cernible let-up in the level of kidnap- pings amongst nationals in the Niger Delta. The Nigerian authorities have been successfully cloning email addresses for the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) and blocking other websites that carry statements from Jomo Gbomo, its leader, who has now been forced to post his statements on The Times of Nigeria website. One recent MEND statement by former comman- ders, stating that themilitant group no longer exists and that any attacks on energy infrastructure have been carried out by other groups masquerading under the MEND name, has been wel- comed, but given scant credence. Worsening the Nigerian situation is
the unwelcome use of the Delta area by Cameroon terror group the Africa Marine Commando, which has carried out raids on the offshore oil facilities in the Bakassi peninsula and then escaping with hostages back over the Cameroon border. Since Nigeria finally handed over the oil-rich Bakassi penin- sula to Cameroon in 2008 following a long dispute, attacks on oil platforms have intensified. One French-managed platform was raided in November, with six killed. The Gulf of Guinea,which has rich oil reserves, has become one of the highest kidnap risk oil territories. Meanwhile, a solution in Somalia
seems further away than ever.Onshore, the notorious Al-Shabaab terror group – emulating Nigeria’s media-savvy MEND group – has established the Al- Kataib news channel to spread its pro- paganda. With
no Somalian
government to speak of, the website is not blocked. Looking offshore, despite the
endeavours of the 28-nation strong naval force, pirate attacks offshore Somalia now extend into the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, and stretch east- wards to theMaldives and south to the Madagascar Channel. The Maldives are covertly being used by pirates to provi- sion their ‘mother ships’, much to the angst of the government. There have also been regular attacks in the Madagascar Channel, with one suc- cessful boarding already this year. The use of a citadel, a well-protected
part of the ship that crewcan escape to and await rescue, has both advantages and disadvantages. In several cases the boarded pirates have given up – but there is a growing incidence of citadels being broken into by pirates using tools kept on the mother ships. Torture of crew members is also on the rise for those notmanaging tomake it into the citadel in time, as is the number of kid- napped crew being taken onboard the mother ship as a human shield in case of naval attack. There have also been recent incidences of captured crew held on mother ships being forced to cut into the citadels of other hijacked vessels. Preventing the killing of hostages (although still a rare occur- rence) is becoming a major headache for the experienced consultants hired by ship owners to negotiate a settle- ment. The number of vessels hijacked and
at anchor along the Somali coastline is at an all-time high, with 31 ships and a total of 688 crew held at the end of February. Hope is fading for a suc- cessful outcome for the MV Iceberg, a ro-ro vessel pirated on 29 March 2010 not far out from the port of Aden, its owners’ continuing to refuse to pay the
PETROLEUMREVIEW APRIL
2011
19
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48