To danske søfolk kunne til sammenligning “nøjes” med to år og tre måneder – der sidder 26 gidsler tilbage den dag i dag i den delvis sammenbrudte og kaotiske nation på Afrika Horn.
VIENNA, 27 February 2015 (UN News Service): Senior United Nations officials have welcomed the release this week of four Thai nationals after nearly five years in captivity, bringing an end to the longest held hostage ordeal in the east African nation thanks to a mission carried by the UN anti-crime agency.
The mission to recover the hostages was conducted by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), funded by the Contact Group for Piracy off the Coast of Somalia’s Trust Fund.
The crew, all Thai nationals, of the FV Prantalay 12 vessel, who were taken at sea by Somali pirates on 18 April 2010, were released on Wednesday by their captors into the hands of the Somali Regional Administration in Galmudug.
The FV Prantalay 12, a Taiwanese flagged fishing vessel, was used by the pirates as a ‘mother ship’ before it eventually capsized in July 2011. The remaining crew were then taken ashore.
Of the original 24 crew members, six died from illness at various stages of captivity, and 14 Burmese crew members were released to the Puntland Maritime Police authorities and were repatriated by the UNODC’s Hostage Support Programme in May 2011.
While this is indeed good news, many more hostages remain in the hands of Somali pirates. A further 26 hostages are currently being held, having been abducted from the FV Naham 3.
The UNODC Hostage Support Programme is also supporting these victims in similar ways such as contact, proof of life and occasional medical visits funded by the Oceans Beyond Piracy.
De danske sømænd, Eddy Lopez og Søren Lyngbjørn, blev frigivet af somaliske pirater i april 2013 efter at have siddet fanget i over to år og tre måneder,
Det er længere end nogen andre danske søfolk har gjort i nyere tid. De er også de vesterlændinge, der har siddet længst som gidsler i Somalia.
“We are extremely relieved to have obtained the release of these four Thai hostages, but let us not forget the remaining 26 Asian crewman still being held in Somalia. They need to be returned home to their families. We are striving to make that happen,” said a UNODC spokesperson.
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http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=50201#.VPEdJWV1T4s
Begynd fra: “He added: “I am hugely grateful….”
