Somali pirates have freed Greek-owned MV Delvina, together with its 14 Filipino seafarers, the Philippine Embassy in Nairobi reported to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Friday. The Embassy said the Filipino crew were safe and in good health. The vessel and its crew were heading to Mombasa. The latest release has reduced the number of hijacked Filipino seafarers off the coast of Somalia to 53, involving four vessels. The Philippine government continues to step up preventive and remedial efforts to address the continuing increase in the number of piracy and hostage-taking involving Filipino seafarers off the coast of Somalia, a DFA statement said. Recently, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) announced its initiative to require Filipino seafarers to undergo anti-piracy training to teach them how to deal with piracy and how to avoid it. DOLE and the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration have also issued safety and security directives to manning agencies of ships plying the Gulf of Aden. DFA and DOLE continue to coordinate and meet with concerned manning agencies and their shipping principals on the release and repatriation of Filipino seafarers who remain in the custody of Somali pirates, the statement said. The government has also brought the menace of piracy to the attention of the International Maritime Organization, the United Nations, and other international fora. It supports all efforts by the international community like the UN Security Council, whether at the UN General Assembly and the International Maritime Organization in London, to put an end to the problem of piracy, the DFA said.
