Maritime threat President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the Navy to end the menace of pirates in the waters of Southeast Asia. To combat this threat the President has called for close cooperation among the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the Philippine Navy to blast pirates from our waters or in the high seas even as he called for close cooperation among Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines to address maritime piracy, as well as the abduction of seafarers within and outside their waters.

The Chief Executive made the appeal during the ninth anniversary of the Mindanao Development Authority and the 25th anniversary of the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) celebrations held in Davao City on Tuesday night.

Mr. Duterte urged the neighboring countries to “remain on guard” to combat terrorists and other lawless elements in their common seas.

“Once again, Indonesia and Malaysia, we have to band together. The world is changing including the economy. It could either go bad or very bad or where it could go well. But we have to go to a bad level and I hope we can survive it,” Mr. Duterte said in his speech.

“I call upon the BIMP- EAGA. We are doing commerce. Our navies must be vigilant. We have to be one in our patrols,” he added.

The President added that the pirates have “no souls” and ordered the military to flush them out.

“Let me very clear to the heads of states, my orders to my Navy is to blast them off the earth. If there are pirates in our territory or in the high seas, my orders are: blast them to kingdom come.

He noted that it is very difficult to prosecute pirates because the witnesses are usually not interested in pursuing the case against them.

“Justice seems to be an illusion, it’s a mirage actually floating in the seas. (That’s why) I am telling the military forces, finish them off,” Duterte said.

An article published in March 2018 said that “in the last few years, Southeast Asia has emerged as a hotbed for piracy, with sea routes off Malaysia, Singapore and the South China Sea regularly frequented by traffickers.”

Research data showed piracy in Southeast Asia fell significantly in the months from January to November 2017 compared to 2016 due to increased coordination between Southeast Asian nations.

Nevertheless, experts speculate that until the root causes of piracy are addressed, it will remain more significant in these waters than in traditional pirate.