西非几内亚湾抢劫和绑架案件数量上升

AS IT IS 2016-05-04 Piracy¹, Kidnapping Increase in West Africa’s Gulf² of Guinea 西非几内亚湾抢劫和绑架案件数量上升

Pirates have been active in the waters of West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea for many years. West Africa has some of the world’s most dangerous waterways. 

Navies in the area have improved their ability to answer robberies on the ocean. However, pirates are changing tactics. They are abducting⁴ sailors and holding them for ransom⁵.

The International Maritime⁶ Bureau reports on crimes at sea. It recently said two of three ship hijackings reported around the world in the first three months of 2015 took place in the Gulf of Guinea. 

Pirates have kidnapped 44 sailors in the Gulf of Guinea this year.  Although piracy is decreasing worldwide, the IMB says it is increasing in West Africa.

In its yearly security report, anti-piracy group Oceans Beyond Piracy says pirates in the Gulf of Guinea are increasingly taking hostages. Matthew Walje is the lead author of the report. He says hostages are often taken to Nigeria’s Niger Delta⁷ area and held there until ransom is paid.

That is a change from past years, he says. Pirates used to steal ships’ cargos and fuel.  Walje says one reason for the change is that taking cargo⁸ takes too much time. Navies in the area have improved their ability to deal with ship hijackings.

“The time that it takes means that it is more likely to be interdicted¹⁰, which then reduces the possibility of success.”

Kidnapping sailors, he says, appears to be faster and less risky¹¹ for the pirates.

“It takes a little bit longer from start to finish, but the actual incident itself is shorter, and the likelihood of success is higher.”

Hostage taking, however, involves more violence. Last year, 23 people were killed in incidents of piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.

Walje says that navies are getting better at dealing¹² with piracy.  He gave the example of an incident last February when the navies of Ghana, Togo and Nigeria tracked a hijacked¹³ ship off their coasts.

The ship was eventually raided, and most of the sailors rescued by the Nigerian navy.

 “The response is getting better and this may be a temporary uptick.”

Walje said a long-term solution to the issue would be for governments to do more to prosecute¹⁴ arrested pirates.  

Words in This Story

pirate – n. someone who attacks and steals from ships at sea

tactics – n. methods leading to a goal

abduct³ – v. to seize or take someone against their will

ransom – n. money demanded for the release of a person being held captive or kidnapped

interdict⁹ – v. to isolate¹⁵, to cut off from others

track – v. to follow as in a hunt

uptick – n. an increase

1 piracy   

n.海盗行为，剽窃，著作权侵害

参考例句：

• The government has already adopted effective measures against piracy.政府已采取有效措施惩治盗版行为。
• They made the place a notorious centre of piracy.他们把这地方变成了臭名昭著的海盗中心。

2 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

3 abduct   

vt.诱拐，拐带，绑架

参考例句：

• The police caught the man who tried to abduct the boy for ransom.警察抓住了那个企图拐走这男孩以便勒索赎金的家伙。
• The news that we see those use network abduct children sometimes filled with apprehension.我们有时看到那些利用网络诱拐儿童的新闻都心惊肉跳。

4 abducting   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的现在分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• She was charged with abducting a six-month-old child. 她被控诱拐一个6个月大的孩子。
• At the same time, the rate of abducting foreigners is going down. 同时，发生在外国人身上的绑架案正在下降。

5 ransom   

n.赎金，赎身；v.赎回，解救

参考例句：

• We'd better arrange the ransom right away.我们最好马上把索取赎金的事安排好。
• The kidnappers exacted a ransom of 10000 from the family.绑架者向这家人家勒索10000英镑的赎金。

6 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。

7 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

8 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

9 interdict   

v.限制；禁止；n.正式禁止；禁令

参考例句：

• Troops could be ferried in to interdict drug shipments.可以把军队渡运过来阻截毒品的装运。
• Interdict could also be sought for the protection of public interests.禁令也可以用于保护公共利益。

10 interdicted   

v.禁止（行动）( interdict的过去式和过去分词 )；禁用；限制

参考例句：

• He was interdicted from acting. 他的行为受到限制。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• It is interdicted by law. 这是法律禁止的。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

11 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

12 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

13 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

14 prosecute   

vt.告发；进行；vi.告发，起诉，作检察官

参考例句：

• I am trying my best to prosecute my duties.我正在尽力履行我的职责。
• Is there enough evidence to prosecute?有没有起诉的足够证据？

15 isolate   

vt.使孤立，隔离

参考例句：

• Do not isolate yourself from others.不要把自己孤立起来。
• We should never isolate ourselves from the masses.我们永远不能脱离群众。