Pirate attacks stop flow of goods to ARMM port

DAVAO CITY—Successive pirate attacks in the Sulu Sea in southern Philippines have forced international traders to suspend the shipment of goods to the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) via the Polloc Port in Maguindanao province, a ranking regional official said.

“While we mourn the tragic loss of life and empathize with those abducted, we are deeply concerned that the bane of piracy in the Sulu Sea has affected our international trade leading to revenue losses for the ARMM regional government, which owns and operates Polloc Port,” said Ishak Mastura, chair of the ARMM’s Regional Board of Investments.

Polloc Port in Parang town serves as the region’s main gateway for international trade.

Giang Hai

The most recent attack by pirates in the Sulu Sea involved the Vietnamese-flagged bulk carrier Giang Hai, which was carrying 4,500 tons of cement from Indonesia. The pirates killed a Vietnamese crew member and abducted seven others on Feb. 19.

Mastura, quoting a report by Hexan Mabang, Polloc Port manager, said the latest act of piracy “was what prompted several shipments of cement and other cargoes to be suspended as shippers refused to charter vessels passing through the Sulu Sea … for Polloc and other ports in Mindanao.”

Setback in trading

Mastura said the port management and ARMM investors had informed him of the latest setback in trading.

The volume of cargoes put on hold was not immediately known. However, there had been a sharp increase in the entry of cargoes via Polloc Port, registering a volume of 757,948 metric tons during the past few years.

Mastura said businessman Christopher Lu had told him that he had been expecting a cargo shipment of wood chips and sundry bulk cargo from Malaysia and Indonesia, but the shipper had refused to proceed after learning of the latest attack.