WaterWords and T.R.U.E. NORTH
Resources for maritime ministry
WaterWords is a collection of Scriptures from the Bible having to do with water or a related theme, all in one place.
WaterWords is available for purchase directly from LAMM. The cost is $5.00 to cover shipping and handling.
Please contact Rev. McCracken at lammworld@gmail.com
Piracy Today
When we think of Piracy we usually think of movies like “Pirates of the Caribbean” with treasure chests of gold and traitors walking the plank. In reality, piracy is still continuing according to International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB). As of June 30, 2010, a total of 196 incidents around the world were recorded by the IMB’s 24 hour Piracy Reporting Centre. This includes 31 vessels hijacked, 48 vessels fired upon and 70 vessels boarded.
During this period, one crew member was killed, 597 crew members were taken hostage and 16 were injured. The use of firearms, including rocket propelled grenades, was particularly marked in the waters off Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden. Attacks in this region and in the Red Sea represent more than half of the incidents reported over the past six months.
The coast of Somalia remains particularly vulnerable with 100 pirate attacks in 2010, including 27 hijackings. As of last Fall, at least 21 foreign vessels plus one barge were being kept in Somali hands against the will of their owners, while at least 376 seafarers - including an elderly British yachting couple - plus the lorry drivers from Somaliland were suffering to be released.
These include shipping vessels, chemical product tankers, oil tankers, vessels carrying food stuffs, cargo vessels and roros. There are seafarers from all over the world working on these ships, often risking their lives to bring cargo to the ports of the world.
Other areas of concern for piracy are the coasts of Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, and other narrow passages in the South China Sea.
For more information check the following web sites:
The International Maritime Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations which is responsible for measures to improve the safety and security of international shipping and to prevent marine pollution from ships. It is also involved in legal matters, including liability and compensation issues and the facilitation of international maritime traffic.
Piracy Petition Presented
On September 23, 2010, the 33rd celebration of World Maritime Day, a petition signed by more than 600,000 persons, calling for an end to piracy, was handed over to the secretary general of the IMO.
At the handing-over ceremony, ISF president Spyros Polemis explained that the inter-industry petition was organized by 17 different shipping bodies. They included BIMCO, INTERCARGO, INTERTANKO, ICS, ISF, IPTA, IMEC, InterManager, SIGTTO, IUMI, IFSMA and the IG of P&I Clubs, as well as ASF, ECSA, ICMA and ICSW. These were in addition to the ITF, who co-ordinated the petition.
“Too often ships are ‘out of sight and out of mind’. But this ‘end piracy’ petition provides a chance for shipping to express itself on one of the most important issues confronting our industry and the seafarers who we employ,” Polemis said.
“On behalf of the industry, I would just quickly like to emphasise one or two things. Since the crisis began in 2008, over 1,500 seafarers have so far been taken hostage by Somali pirates, often for months at a time and in truly awful conditions - a situation which is simply unacceptable. Our primary concern is humanitarian.