Relatives of 39 Kenyans held by pirates recount last moments

Relatives of some of the 39 Kenyans being held aboard Fv Golden Wave on Tuesday gave painful accounts of their last moments with their loved ones.

They talked of dashed hopes of happy reunion with their family members, who were expected to arrive home around October 9 — almost the same time their ship was captured by the marauding pirates.

Most of them are still struggling to come to terms with the ordeal and feared for the safety of their relatives, who are held captive in the pirates’ lairs in an undisclosed spot off the Somali coast.

“When I last spoke to my husband (Mr James Savwetsa) on October 9, he told me that they would be arriving in less than two days. We did not communicate again until I heard of the hijack,” said Ms Elizabeth Molly, a mother of four.

Within our waters

Mr John Mwikamba, brother-in-law of Mr Fred Odhiambo, a third engineer on the vessel, said: “When I heard that the ship was hijacked within our waters, I was shocked. Why should pirates come for the vessels here? Don’t we have security personnel manning our territory?”

He said since the vessel might be held for some months, the government should assist family members of the hostages.

He also appealed to the government to at least provide information on the whereabouts of their loved ones for them not to despair.

It is the highest number of Kenyans to be held hostage by pirates on board one vessel so far. Others are two Chinese and two Koreans.

The relatives spoke as maritime experts, in reaction to this latest exploit by the pirates, warned that the country’s 250 nautical miles might end up being controlled by sea gangs if the current rate of vessel hijackings persist.

East Africa Seafarers Assistance programme coordinator Andrew Mwangura termed the hijacking of Fv Golden Wave, a South Korean fishing vessel only 10 nautical miles off Kenya’s coast last week as “worrying” and “dangerous”.

“Our waters are not safe any more,” he said.

“Security measures should be taken urgently before the worst happens because some hostages who had been held before said pirates had been threatening to carry out attacks within our waters, plans they are executing now.”

According to Mr Mwangura, the vessel could not be traced on the tracking systems, and was probably being used as a mother ship to launch attacks on other ships or as a bait to lure ships into traps, just like mv Tai Yuan 227 that was hijacked two months ago with six Kenyans on board.

Used as mother ship

“The captain (Kim Dae Gun) is also the owner of the vessel and it was not clear why they decided to keep quiet after the hijack because it was reported ten days later,” he said.

He added: “It is more dangerous when a vessel is used as a mother ship or to launch attacks because the risk is higher. Other sea gangs might attack it, which exposes hostages to higher risks.”