By Maryam Azwer and Pavithra Jovan de Mello
Sunday, April 29, 2012
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Six fishermen who returned to Sri Lanka last week after seven months, six of which they spent as captives of Somali pirates, have expressed gratitude towards the crew of Spanish warship Infanta Elena, who rescued them earlier this month.Weerasena Silva, Jude Nishantha, Dinesh Susantha, Perumal Raja, Levan Rodrigo and Shantha Sebastian Fernando, left Negombo on September 27, 2011 in a multi-day fishing trawler, Nimesha Duwa.
A month later, on October 28, the six fishermen had heard a gunshot while out at sea, in international waters. The seas had been rough, and they had been anchored for three days.
Little did they know that they were soon to become captives to a group of infamous Somali pirates.
“We first heard a noise that sounded like a gunshot, but we didn’t take any notice, because we were so far out at sea and didn’t think somebody would be shooting,” said Weerasena Silva, captain of Nimesha Duwa, speaking to The Sunday Leader while on his way home to Kalutara last Thursday.
Shortly after, the fishermen had then heard a series of gunshots, and saw three small boats approach. “We put our hands up when we saw them. They surrounded us and some of them got into our boat. They asked us for money, and we said that we were only fishermen, and didn’t have any money. Then they said ‘come with us’ and forced us to go with them towards Somalia,” said Silva.
The terrified fishermen were then for weeks held captive, mostly at sea. Their vessel was taken over by the pirates, who forced the fishermen to work for them. Back in Sri Lanka, neither the authorities nor the fishermen’s families heard from them until January.
In December, the pirates had taken one of the younger fishermen, Jude Nishantha, to shore, and interrogated him at gunpoint. Now back at his humble home in Pitipana, Negombo, Nishantha recalls that frightening experience.
“I have never seen people like them . They looked very mean. They asked me for details of our boat, the boat owner, and our country. They wanted telephone numbers. They even wanted the President’s telephone number, and I said I didn’t have it, I am just a poor fishermen,” said Nishantha.
According to him, only two of the pirates were conversant in English and communicated mostly through Nishantha, who was most capable in handling the language. “Then they also wanted to know what our country could give them, in ransom. They asked whether our country had gems, or gold,” he said.
Later, on January 4, 2012 the fishermen were taken ashore, and brought to a deserted area, where they were allowed to call home. It was after this that Sri Lankan authorities were informed that the Somali pirates demanded a US $6 million ransom for the release of the fishermen.
While authorities were debating how best to secure the release of the fishermen, the pirates continued to give their captives a hard time. Jude Nishantha recalled how there were another three vessels the pirates had captured, including, he claimed, an Iranian ship with another six Sri Lankans among the twenty three people on board.
Then in April, a group of seven Somali pirates had taken the Nimesha Duwa, along with Nishantha and the others, and begun sailing towards South Africa. “A few days after we left, I saw another ship passing by and tried to get their attention,” said Nishantha. One of the pirates saw him, and had questioned him. “I was so scared. I thought they would kill me so I just made up a lie when they asked what I was doing,” he said.
Then, in the course of their journey, the vessel’s engine ceased to function. On April 18, Nishantha, who had been watching the sea, noticed a light in the distance.
“Just an hour before that, they [the pirates] had their weapons, but by then they had gotten rid of the weapons,” he said, adding “That’s what they usually do. If they see a helicopter flying, or spot a bigger ship, they put away their weapons and sit with the hostages so that they can’t be identified as pirates.”
What Nishantha had seen turned out to be Spanish warship Infanta Elena, which belongs to the European Union Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia – Operation ATALANTA.
Having spotted and identified the Nimesha Duwa 50 miles off the coast of Tanzania, the Spanish vessel had approached.
According to Nishantha, the warship had stopped around a 100 metres away from them, and deployed two smaller boats, which had started towards Nimesha Duwa from both sides.
“We got up and called out for help. Around 15 or 20 people came and boarded our boat. They restrained the pirates using some special handcuffs and gave them some injections as well,” said Nishantha. They were then all taken aboard the Spanish warship, and an engineer checked the Nimesha Duwa and said the engine could not be fixed, after which it was towed back to Tanzania. The six Sri Lankan fishermen were then taken to Tanzania, after which Sri Lankan authorities helped facilitate their return to Sri Lanka.
For Jude Nishantha, the experience has left him wondering whether he would ever want to go out to sea again. He also said he was disappointed in the state’s handling of the matter, particularly in the lack of help his family received during his capture.
“My family does not want me to go to sea again. The first day, when we were caught, I thought we’d die. After that I prayed every day, asking God to send angels to rescue us. On the day we were rescued, we had actually discussed among ourselves to escape. We wanted to swim away, but then the Spanish navy came. We are extremely grateful to them,” he said.
Weerasena Silva shared his sentiments. “I had lost all hopes of coming back home and seeing my family. Now I don’t know how I can express my thanks to the Spanish navy, for saving our lives,” he said.