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AfrOil PIPELINES & TRANSPORT AfrOil

Nigeria’s shady seizure of oil vessel casts

doubts over country’s anti-piracy laws

NIGERIA AN international oil tanker and its crew remain by Nigeria.
in the custody of the Nigerian authorities, after The authorities are accusing the crew of not
they were arrested more than three months ago displaying the Equatoguinean flag, navigating
in unclear circumstances. Nigeria is report- “without any form of authorisation or clearance”
edly about to prosecute everyone on board with the aim of carrying out oil theft and calling
with piracy charges, under the Suppression of out an unjustified piracy alarm.
Piracy and Other Maritime Offences Act 2019 The 26-men crew, made up mainly of Indian
(SPOMO). nationals but reportedly including also Polish,
The Marshall Islands-flagged Heroic Idun – Sri Lankan and Philippine citizens, was detained
owned by Ray Car Carriers, operated by Nor- for nearly three months by Equatorial Guin-
wegian manager OSM Ship Management and ean authorities without being provided with
sub-chartered to oil major BP – had been due any consular assistance. Some of them have,
to load cargo from Nigeria’s Akpo Terminal on meanwhile, been hospitalised after contracting
August 8. malaria and typhoid.
The routine loading trip took an unexpected “The vessel and its 26 multinational crew
turn when the tanker was approached by an uni- members have now been detained in Equa-
dentified vessel carrying armed men. The vessel torial Guinea for more than 80 days. The sea-
later turned out to be the Nigerian Navy’s NNS farers have been treated as criminals, without
Gongola, but the crew mistook it for a pirate any formal charges or legal process for close to
boat and escaped in international waters while three months; it is nothing short of a shocking
broadcasting a “piracy attack call” to the Inter- maritime injustice,” said OSM Group CEO Finn
national Maritime Bureau (IMB). Amund Norbye.
The Norwegian ship management company Nigeria immediately requested the tank-
OSM is defending the crew’s action, maintaining er’s return to its ports. It eventually obtained
that they had just followed the “best manage- the green light from Equatorial Guinea only
ment practice” guidelines in case of suspected on November 12, when the Nigerian navy
piracy attacks. escorted the Heroic Idun to the Bonny Offshore
The tanker managed to exit the Nigerian Terminal.
Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) but was even- The legal situation and the crew’s fate are
tually chased down and arrested by the author- unclear, given the Nigerian authorities’ lack
ities of neighbouring Equatorial Guinea at the of transparency on the matter – even though
request of the Nigerian Navy. they recently released an update justifying their
The Heroic Idun was held at gunpoint at the actions. Diplomatic negotiations are believed
Luba Anchorage in Bioko Island, Equatorial to be underway among the interested parties to
Guinea, while the country conducted its own secure the crew’s release, but the case remains
investigations, allegedly pressured and assisted shrouded in mystery.

The All India Seafarers Union has posted photos of the detained crewmen (Photo: Twitter/@AllSeafarers)

P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 47 24•November•2022