## 6 Discussion
### Piracy and Other Crime  
Like terrorism, the threat of piracy in Southeast Asia continues to be of concern. Data from the ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre (ISC) show the total number of piracy and armed robbery against ships (ARAS) incidents hovering in the range of 70-100 incidents per year for five years, from 2017 to 2022 [64]. At time of writing, data from January to June 2023 showed 59 incidents, \"this accounts for a 40% increase in incidents compared to 42 incidents reported during January-June 2022\" [65] making it likely the total number for 2023 will increase from 2022 but remain in the same range of 70-100. The report further notes:  
The increase of incidents during January-June 2023 occurred in the Philippines, Straits of Malacca and Singapore (SOMS), Thailand and Vietnam. Of concern was the continued occurrence of incidents in the SOMS, with 41 incidents reported compared to 27 incidents during the same period in 2022. [65]  
It can be noted that all of the incidents occurred while vessels were underway, and in the majority of cases (61%) the perpetrators were unarmed and did not harm crew (90%). Those that did carry weapons most commonly used knives and machetes. Only one report in 2022 noted perpetrators carrying guns. In two incidents, crew members were taken hostage but were able to escape, and in two other cases, crew members were assaulted. Items stolen were ship's property, engine spares, and unsecured items. This picture largely confirms the comments of one Indonesian Coast Guard source, who stated the following in an interview: \"These incidents are not piracy, they are more like petty theft, petty crime. It's also not uncommon that the crew themselves steal the items and report it as being stolen.\" The coast guard went on to say the following: \"The information from the IMB and the IFC is often not accurate. We want to give seafarers a correct picture that's we why we set up the Indonesia Maritime Information Centre (IMIC)\" [66]. A monthly report from the IMIC for June 2023 records a number of different maritime incidents including drug trafficking, IUU fishing, irregular human migration, and maritime accidents, but does not record any piracy or ARAS incidents for the period. It does include a category for 'petty theft' [67]. The Head of the Indonesian Maritime Institute, when asked about piracy in the SOMS, made the following comment:  
The Singapore Strait is very busy, so the vessel must be in low speed. So it is very attractive for these guys to onboard your vessels. They take laptops, watches and then fly back to their boat. This is not piracy. But is sometimes reported as piracy to hurt Indonesia's feelings. It's spontaneous and not well organized. There is another type which has international connections that target tankers. This is not locals, this is beyond their capacity. To hijack tankers and extract the fuel is a tricky business. This is very rare in Indonesia and always involves international actors. The bosses are in Singapore, and the operators are in Batam. [68]  
While the levels of piracy in and around the SOMS remain at a level that would be of concern to any reasonable captain transiting the straits, it may be said that they are largely of a type that consists of opportunistic petty theft while underway, rather than acts of extreme violence. However, occasional acts of assault and hostage taking still occur. Regardless, it may be observed that in all cases the goal of pirates and armed robbers is not to block traffic in the strait; indeed, they profit from increased traffic as it enlarges the number of their potential targets. While ReCAAP issues regular advice and updates to captains of ships transiting the SOMS; if levels of piracy and crime were to significantly increase in frequency and violence it could severely disrupt shipping through the straits. At present this is not the case.