Spare a thought for the Chandlers

Which is, of course, exactly the correct thing to do.

Yes of course it is. This latest release is designed to force UK Gov to give in & cough up some dosh. It aint going to happen.

Agree completely with these comments. Not absolutely certain about this, but I thought this couple where strongly warned not to sail anywhere near the area they were trying to pass through.
 
As far as i am aware, they were long way (1,000nm? anyone got nav info?) from usual piracy area.

Bit of a waste of time having a navy if it does...nothing? I mean, wasn't the navy -government funded ships with guns- partly started to stop piracy of brit ships? A bit? Seems a poor show to me. But i understand that govt can't pay ransoms, of course.
 
They must be going through hell.They haven't been executed yet and I don't believe they will be but I can't think of a way out of this situation apart from the pirates giving up and releasing them.Sad really.
 
Whilst I totally agree with not paying ransoms the government are saying that they are doing everything they can, but in the absence of anyone letting us know what they are doing, we are inevitably left with the conclusion that they are doing nothing. If they are actually doing anything, anything at all, then why not give us an idea what that is? Or give a valid reason ("it's very sensitive" won't do, sorry) for not telling us. And if they feel that they are unable to do anything, then tell us, at least that would be being honest. At the moment, just about everyone, for various reasons, thinks they are behaving like sh*ts...
 
I can't think of a way out of this situation apart from the pirates giving up and releasing them.Sad really.

Tragic.

I can only think of a few ways this could end.

-The Chandler's family get a ransom together and pay it.

-The Pirates realize they're not getting any cash & release them in exchange for a token payment of a "release admin charge" of five grand or something. ie Not enough to encourage further attacks on UK yachties but enough to let the pirates claim to maintain the principle that they don't release hostage without a payment.

- The Pirates realize they're not getting any cash then let them go on humanitarian grounds due to their health.

- They die in captivity of illness.

However it ends, I fear the Chandlers are in for a long wait, but any practical alternative encourages the pirates. A rescue would be nice, but I can't imagine how you'd achieve that.
 
Whilst I totally agree with not paying ransoms the government are saying that they are doing everything they can, but in the absence of anyone letting us know what they are doing, we are inevitably left with the conclusion that they are doing nothing.

Isn't appearing to be doing nothing exactly what you should do in a hostage situation?
 
How did it go.........Rule Brittania........I dont think so,
its about time the government pulled there finger out and did something and got these poor people out of there!!!
How easy it is to sit back in a chair in Number 10 and repeat the same statement.....we dont negotiate with pirates! Wonder if old Gordon would have the same outlook if it was his Mother and Father????????
 
How easy it is to sit back in a chair in Number 10 and repeat the same statement.....we dont negotiate with pirates!

I would imagine not easy at all. Nightmareishly difficult. Putting one couple through misery, terror and danger to protect future people form ending up in a similar position. Not a position I would want to be in, but I hope I'd have the courage to do the same.

Wonder if old Gordon would have the same outlook if it was his Mother and Father????????

You're surely not saying decisions are better if they're made from a subjective standpoint?
 
How did it go.........Rule Brittania........I dont think so,
its about time the government pulled there finger out and did something and got these poor people out of there!!!
How easy it is to sit back in a chair in Number 10 and repeat the same statement.....we dont negotiate with pirates! Wonder if old Gordon would have the same outlook if it was his Mother and Father????????

Do Something - such as what?

You give / help others to give the pirates something that they want = they take more hostages.

You grab the hostrages = high risk - the couple aren;t together, probably moved around and lots of armed people around.

You negotiate quietly behind the scenes through contacts of contacts = it keeps the pirates thinking simething is happening.

You wait - The media get fed up and demand you do something that will let them tell a story - sell more papers etc.


Unfortunately in real life it doesn't work out like the rambo movies. Special forces may well be an option but it's not easy

Even if you know where they are - how do you ensure they will still be there when SAS get there.

How do you get the SAS to the compound where the chandlers are? I suspect covertly - at night but is it in town and hard to approach or in the middle of nowhere.

How to you work through the compound to get to the chandlers to protect / free them and then get them out without being shot at by pirates.

How do stop pirates etc killing the other hostages they have - Realistically you can;t rescue all of them.

How do you then get pensioners from their camp to a place where they can be removed from the country - can;t seem them walking 2-3 miles with angry pirates chasing after them.

The pirates haven't killed anyone yet - the safest bet for the chandlers is to stay there until the pirates have worked out that no-one is going to pay them and release the pair or they make serious threats to kill them in which case special forces option is the only one left IF you know ehere they are - The worst optin would be for the SAS to charge in - chandlers get killed in the cross fire along with a few soldiers, a load of pirates and some innocent somali women and children.
 
Jac

Just keep managing your bank me old fruit, and dont speculate on matters you clearly know little or nothing about.
I dont mean to be nasty but ''speculation '' is the cause of more problems than you can imagine.
 
What I think some people forget is that this is not some kind of political party or organisation with any kind of credibility. These are criminal gangs that take people hostage for money, and just because they have not killed any hostages that we are aware of does not mean they will not, and it certainly should not be used as an excuse to sit back and wait.

As for not giving them what they want in case this encourages further acts of piracy.....what nonsense, ransomes have already been paid for commercial ships so its a bit like shutting the gate after the horse has bolted.

Have no time for people who stick their fingers in their ears and hope the problem will go away, which is what I think our government are doing.
 
This is an open thread. Peeps please think about what you are saying before you post comments.

If you do a search you will find that this subject has already been done to death in a dozen separate threads with people saying the most outrageous things, so it is a bit late to come on here hinting subtly that you have inside knowledge and the rest of us are a bunch of problem-causing speculators.

That point has already been made several times, but it is unlikely to shut people up on here and in any case I don't think anything said here is likely to make one iota of difference. The pirates have access to the whole of the media via the internet and almost certainly have the intelligence to accurately rate the significance of personal opinions expressed on this forum.

- W
 
Top