Hobyo fishermen issued ID cards differentiating them from pirates

Hobyo fishermen have been issued identification cards as fishers and fishing licences.
Galmudug Administration collaborating with FAO has undertaken initiatives to issues ID cards to the fishermen in a bid to recognize and differentiate them from pirates who highjack ships using international waters.
Abdikadir Qalab-xoor, former Galmudug state minister for fisheries said that these ID cards will play very important role in the efforts to fight against pirates.
Abdiwahid Mohamed Hirsi speaking on behalf of FAO said that the fishermen will carry out fishing without fearing to fall in the hands of warships from NATO’s Standing Naval Maritime Group which conducting anti-piracy work and escorting merchant ships, including some carrying food aid for Somalia.
Many countries have deployed warships in the Gulf of Aden and waters off the Somali coast to fight rampant pirates, after their ship high jacked or escaped pirate hijack in the region.
Things also become more complicated due to the changing nature of how ships arm themselves.
While semiautomatic weapons used to be a telltale sign of pirates, now virtually every ship has them. As a result, it can create confusion for armed guards — they could make a fatal mistake if they shoot too quickly, while at the same time, hesitation can mean losing the chance to prevent violence with warning shots or flares.
The decline in Somali piracy is the result of a concerted policing effort by the world’s navies, including India’s.
Meanwhile, Hobyo fishermen were seriously complaining about foreign vessels which chase them and pour them with hot water.
Local Fishermen have continuously complained about foreign trawlers who are doing the illegal fishing and dumping waste.
Some fishermen have gone missing while others are tortured by the trawlers who at times spray boiling water from cannons.