Maritime Law Enforcement and Regulatory Officers from Asian Countries Meet in China

GUANGZHOU : The ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre (ISC), in cooperation with its China Focal Point, the China Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center [MRCC] (Beijing), has concluded a Capacity Building Workshop (CBW) from 3 to 6 June 2024 held in Guangzhou, China. The workshop facilitated the sharing of best practices among ReCAAP member States in Asia, and allowed ReCAAP Focal Points/Contact Point officers to strengthen their skills in reporting and verifying piracy and sea robbery incidents using ReCAAP’s Information Network System (IFN).

The workshop was attended by the coast guards, navies and maritime law enforcement agencies from ReCAAP Focal Points/Contact Point in Asia (Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam), and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency.

The ReCAAP Focal Points/Contact Point, during the workshop, shared their countries’ efforts in preventing sea robbery incidents in their ports, anchorages and territorial waters. Participants also took part in a training session and table-top exercise to familiarise themselves with reporting of incidents using ReCAAP ISC’s Information Network System (IFN). In addition, Mr Li Quan, Deputy Director of Safety Management at Dalian Maritime University delivered a lecture on the theory and application of international maritime law on piracy and sea robbery incidents.

Mr Krishnaswamy Natarajan, Executive Director of ReCAAP ISC, said “The Focal Points/Contact Point of ReCAAP Member States play a crucial role in timely and accurate incident reporting and response, the ReCAAP ISC is committed to building the knowledge and skills sets of Focal Points/Contact Point officers to manage piracy and sea robbery incidents in their area of responsibility. The piracy and sea robbery situation in Asia from January to May 2024 has seen an improvement with 42 incidents reported during this period, against 49 incidents in same period in 2023.

I appreciate the efforts of the ReCAAP member States in arresting and prosecuting the perpetrators, which contributed to a 14% reduction in robbery incidents”. He stressed