Presentation No.7
IMO Guidelines to Administrations on combating piracy
29 Lieutenant M. M. Edgerton (United States Coast Guard) spoke about the Recommendations to Governments for combating piracy and armed robbery against ships (MSC/Circ.622) which identify several areas in which Administrations are recommended to pay particular attention to the following:
.1 timely reporting: The importance of reporting acts of piracy cannot be overstated. Masters should be encouraged to report acts of piracy to the appropriate authorities, generally to the Rescue Co-ordination Centres (RCCs) or other agencies. The reporting should be uniform in order to ensure accuracy of the information reported;
.2 information management: The information reported should be put to effective use in two ways. If the incident is recent or ongoing, the information may be effectively used in promulgating threat warnings. Information may also contribute to longer term analysis which can be valuable in planning counter-piracy operations;
.3 regional co-operation: Regional States which are affected by piracy should engage in co-operative information-sharing and the conduct of joint operations; and
.4 proper mix of forces/equipment: States should evaluate their equipment and procedures.
He then presented some ways in which the benefits in the findings and recommendations contained in MSC/Circ.622 might be further maximized:
Decentralization of decision-making and the pursuit of formal agreements at the operational level: Decentralizing decision-making could expedite response efforts in cases of piracy. Mr. Edgerton said that, if communications flow from the station which picked up the report or signal to the local operational commander who is authorized to respond in concert with other agencies and regional security forces without prior approval, response efforts could be significantly enhanced using existing resources. If local commanders have the authority to undertake deterrent efforts and patrols with each other, attacks could be prevented. This co-ordination could be accomplished through the use of exchange of officers, common radio frequencies and procedures and pre-arranged operational procedures. He referred to a sample of regional agreement for combating piracy which he prepared and was later considered during the seminar and workshop (annex 5).
Reporting and information management: According to Mr. Edgerton, all information should be shared freely among regional States. Masters and crews should be encouraged to report these incidents and should not be unduly delayed from sailing as a consequence of having provided a report. Stations receiving reports on piracy should be authorized to relay that information to other stations in the vicinity, regardless of the nationality, without the approval of the next higher headquarters. This decentralization of the information flow could significantly enhance response times for security forces.
Incident command system (ICS) and fusion centre: Mr. Edgerton pointed out that the States of the region of interest for the present seminar and workshop have demonstrated that co-operation between Governments exists in combating piracy. He insisted on the fact that this additional suggestions are not intended to be expensive and are designed to act as force multipliers allowing existing arrangements, relationships and procedures to be modified in order to enhance their efficiency. Mr. Edgerton indicated that the incident command system provides a simple, effective command and control system for complex emergency response situations involving many agencies. This system has been adopted by many US Law enforcement and emergency response agencies including the US Coast Guard and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It comprises a modular organization which can be reduced or expanded as necessary, integrated communications, a unified command structure (fusion centre) in which persons from different agencies know their role because of the existence of a pre-approved consolidated action plan and a manageable span of control.
