THE Bay of Bengal has become a sanctuary of pirates who are regularly creating terrors, robbing fishermen and kidnapping them for ransom and often killing the victims. And fishermen have become scared of going to the sea due to safety reasons as a result of it. The incidents have risen alarmingly in the recent past in the sea and the coastal belts. A news report in a national daily on Sunday said, Sundarban centric pirates have killed at least 10 fishermen while severely injuring 65 and kidnapping 145 others in the last two months. The terrors that spread from those incidents have caused panic among 10 lakh fishermen who operate in the area forcing many of them to stay away from going to sea for fishing.
The report said pirates have attacked at least 110 fishing trawlers and looted fish, fishing net and other goods worth around Tk 12 crore from them in recent months. There were plenty of Hilsha catches in the recent months in the Bay and the rivers having access to the sea. Taking the advantage of more fishermen flocking to the sea and the rivers, different pirate groups headed by some very dreaded pirates landed in the area to let loose a reign of terror. Fishermen have demanded a pirate-free Bay to avoid the risk of coming under attacks and losing their catches and lives as it could happen on any occasion. They have also demanded protection from the authorities concerned like Bangladesh Navy (BN) and Bangladesh Coast Guard (BCG) to make their way free from danger.
As we know, pirates become active from April to August every year as it covers the major fishing season. This is the time when they terrorize fishermen and cause casualties to their persons, besides taking away their catches. Pirates use firearms to rob fishermen and kidnap them for ransom. In most cases, fishermen got killed when they try to resist the attacks. Only one figure shows that at least 40 fishermen were killed in a single attack in the Kutubdia channel in April last year. Fishermen said they demanded police protection but they had to bribe them in the first place. But police reportedly took double the amount of bribes from pirates and refrained from taking any punitive action against them.
Reports said BN, BCG are taking special drives in the pirate infested areas of the Bay and in the coastal areas in recent weeks. But they reportedly alleged that there was a shortage of vessels and equipment to carry out an effective drive. We hold the view that the government should provide necessary support to the forces and do everything to keep the sea and coastal areas free from the pirates menace. Fishermen not only supply fish to market, they make their livelihood out of it. There can be any neglect to saving them from terrors which be easily removed by logical acts of the government.
