Whatever has happened to the freedom of the seas?

[gusmus]

A British man was murdered and his body thrown overboard by three men who then forced his wife to steer the boat to shore, police in Thailand said.

Malcolm Robertson, from East Sussex, and his wife Linda were attacked off Satun, the Foreign Office confirmed.

Thai Police have arrested three Burmese men in connection with the incident.

Police Captain Suparak Pongkarnjana said Mr Robertson shouted for help but the men "slit his throat with a knife and hit him".

So far no body has been found but it is understood the 64-year-old was killed on Monday while sailing with his wife near Koh Dong, an island about 45 miles west of Satun.

Three migrant workers from Burma are said to have confessed to killing Mr Roberston when he caught them trying to steal a dinghy from his moored yacht.

Continued:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england...sex/7961408.stm

 

[mad]

A British man was murdered and his body thrown overboard by three men who then forced his wife to steer the boat to shore, police in Thailand said.Malcolm Robertson, from East Sussex, and his wife Linda were attacked off Satun, the Foreign Office confirmed.

Thai Police have arrested three Burmese men in connection with the incident.

Police Captain Suparak Pongkarnjana said Mr Robertson shouted for help but the men "slit his throat with a knife and hit him".

So far no body has been found but it is understood the 64-year-old was killed on Monday while sailing with his wife near Koh Dong, an island about 45 miles west of Satun.

Three migrant workers from Burma are said to have confessed to killing Mr Roberston when he caught them trying to steal a dinghy from his moored yacht.

Continued:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england...sex/7961408.stm

Saw that, fucking hell, killing the guy for a dinghy!!

Death penalty with a bit of luck

 

[Storz]

Absolutly horrible

 

[walterbshaffer]

For the amount of poverty in that part of the world the amount of physical violence is very low. Thailand really is "The Land of Smiles" even if someone you meet has literally nothing.

 

[mad]

For the amount of poverty in that part of the world the amount of physical violence is very low. Thailand really is "The Land of Smiles" even if someone you meet has literally nothing.

Got to agree with you about Thailand, people there are great from my experience and incredibly honest

 

[kent_island_sailor]

Thailand is not Burma.

The muderers were likely refugees of some sort from the ongoing problems in Burma.

For the amount of poverty in that part of the world the amount of physical violence is very low. Thailand really is "The Land of Smiles" even if someone you meet has literally nothing.

Got to agree with you about Thailand, people there are great from my experience and incredibly honest

 

[gusmus]

Thailand is not Burma.The muderers were likely refugees of some sort from the ongoing problems in Burma.

For the amount of poverty in that part of the world the amount of physical violence is very low. Thailand really is "The Land of Smiles" even if someone you meet has literally nothing.

Got to agree with you about Thailand, people there are great from my experience and incredibly honest

Too True. I know Thailand and have always loved the place. But, this is another nail in the coffin as a sailors destination for sure. The tourism industry down below works 100% towards the ingress of tourists, but the protection of them becomes a dim light or a non existent battery that was stolen in the first place.

What I'm basically saying is; If you can't garantee us a modicum of safety such as we garantee to you,,,,,, Then FUCK OFF, We'll go somewhere else.

 

[sinner]

For the amount of poverty in that part of the world the amount of physical violence is very low. Thailand really is "The Land of Smiles" even if someone you meet has literally nothing.

The 3 perps, according to news reports, were from Myanamr (Burma) and deserve to be bled and fed slowly to the sharks. WTF ever happened to cutting down a tree and making a canoe? Too bad the Robertsons didn't have large caliber "greeting" for these 3 buttlumps.

For me, I think Dorothy said it best: "Home! And this is my room - and you are all here! And I'm not going to leave here ever again, because I love you all! And --- Oh, Auntie Em-----there's no place like home!"

 

[oc_man]

USS Vella Gulf stays active with the arrest of another nine Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden, as reported here:

The guided missile cruiser USS Vella Gulf intercepted and caught nine suspected pirates after the crew of the Indian-flagged Motor Vessel Premdivya said it had been fired on and people were attempting to board their vessel, the Navy said.

In a similar incident Wednesday, the Navy seized seven suspected pirates. It was taking them to Kenya under an agreement that the African nation will prosecute pirates from lawless Somalia.

Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said officials are gathering more information and evidence on Thursday's incident so they could turn the suspects over to authorities for prosecution, most likely also to Kenya.

In Thursday's capture, the skiff of suspected pirates stopped fleeing after a helicopter crew from the Vella Gulf fired two warning shots. The skiff was searched and some items were seized, but Whitman did disclose what they were. Weapons, including rocket-propelled grenades, were also found, he said.

The suspected pirates were taken to the supply ship USNS Lewis and Clark, which now has all 16 captured Wednesday and Thursday.

I don't know what the daily or bag limits are on Gulf of Aden pirates, but some of these suspects are getting their first helicopter rides, perp walks and beans and rice at U.S. taxpayer expense as Lewis and Clark loads up before sending this "foot soldiers" in the pirate war off to Kenya for trial. The bigger fish are safely ashore, though bagging enough low level pirates will slow the growth of their pocketbooks in time - as will a shortage of small boats and motors which, I presume, are also being bagged. AK-47s and RPGs are too plentiful to have much impact . . .

-http://www.eaglespeak.us/

 

[gavinspier]

I am as disgusted as everyone at this incident.

A common definition of a pirate is someone who robs at sea or plunders the land from the sea without commission from a sovereign nation. These 3 clearly fit the definition. However there are many forms of piracy as there are robbery on land. There is this type of incident which differs significantly from the organized (potentially sovereign sponsored by Somalia therefore not piracy) piracy we have seen in the news. The editor asks whether it is "time for the US military to take a leadership role in fucking these pirates up for good while spreading the word that piracy will be punishable by death?". I think in this case and similar leave it to the local police who seem to have it as much under control as the land based robbery and murder that takes place. There are many similar stories of gruesome robbery and murder on boats all around the world (even the US!).

So following my "long air" rambling Ed, the answer from me is - No do not ask the US military to take on another cause right now

 

[Evo]

Too True. I know Thailand and have always loved the place.

Have you ever been to Satun? Not a good place for westeners compared to what goes on north of there. Very strange town that.

 

[gusmus]

Too True. I know Thailand and have always loved the place.

Have you ever been to Satun? Not a good place for westeners compared to what goes on north of there. Very strange town that.

I should probably re-phrase that as "I "knew" Thailand and loved the place. Its been a few years now since I hung up my blue water oilies and so I suppose that as with every other destination in my tattered log book, they will have changed beyond all recognition. That's a shame in itself but the real shame lies in the fact that the human element seems to have changed as well. We were used to the "bum boats calling out to the anchorages, offering everything from fresh fruit to their ten year old sister and although a nuisance at times, it was an accepted as part of the cruising experience. I imagine now that just the sight of these boats heading out from the shore is going to cause a modicum of panic amongst the boats at anchor and in some cases is going to end up in misunderstandings. Personally I've only has one experience of a semi boarding and that was in Puerto Rico where I awoke to odd noises and discovered a whole family of fellow cruisers hanging off of my stern in a rubber dinghy with my Aries wind vane partially dismounted from the bracket. I will mention no nationalities here, but when threatened with a 12 gauge flare up their inner tubes, the matriarch said "Perdon Monsoir" and departed tout suite. Their boat had headed for pastures new by the morning.

 

[biscuit1]

Tie a line to their feet, drag 'em till they drown, cut the line, simple....

 

[osage]

A British man was murdered and his body thrown overboard by three men who then forced his wife to steer the boat to shore, police in Thailand said.Malcolm Robertson, from East Sussex, and his wife Linda were attacked off Satun, the Foreign Office confirmed.

Thai Police have arrested three Burmese men in connection with the incident.

Police Captain Suparak Pongkarnjana said Mr Robertson shouted for help but the men "slit his throat with a knife and hit him".

So far no body has been found but it is understood the 64-year-old was killed on Monday while sailing with his wife near Koh Dong, an island about 45 miles west of Satun.

Three migrant workers from Burma are said to have confessed to killing Mr Roberston when he caught them trying to steal a dinghy from his moored yacht.

Continued:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england...sex/7961408.stm

The world is no longer as we knew it. You know, in the good old days the pirates were white and conducted their raping, robbing and mayhem with more style and class. Their wonderful deeds are still glorified to this day. I think I even saw some at the last costume party I attended. We love our pirates of old, but these new age third world ragamuffin pirates, well, they are disgusting are they not? How could they? They don't even know how to dress. In all seriousness, my prays for the 1st Mate and wife that lost a loving husband, and probably a good sailor at that!

 

[kent_island_sailor]

Gusmus,

I am kind of amused at your change of pace here.

THEN:

Americans = gun toting homicidal xenophobes who are terrified of anything new or different from what they could find at an inland Walmart who cower on their boats terrified of all the danged furriners while cleaning their guns.

NOW:

Anger at innocent sailors abused, robbed and killed by local scumbags, desire for the local government to crack down, and admitting chasing thieves off with a firearm!

I like the NOW personsality better

Too True. I know Thailand and have always loved the place.

Have you ever been to Satun? Not a good place for westeners compared to what goes on north of there. Very strange town that.

I should probably re-phrase that as "I "knew" Thailand and loved the place. Its been a few years now since I hung up my blue water oilies and so I suppose that as with every other destination in my tattered log book, they will have changed beyond all recognition. That's a shame in itself but the real shame lies in the fact that the human element seems to have changed as well. We were used to the "bum boats calling out to the anchorages, offering everything from fresh fruit to their ten year old sister and although a nuisance at times, it was an accepted as part of the cruising experience. I imagine now that just the sight of these boats heading out from the shore is going to cause a modicum of panic amongst the boats at anchor and in some cases is going to end up in misunderstandings. Personally I've only has one experience of a semi boarding and that was in Puerto Rico where I awoke to odd noises and discovered a whole family of fellow cruisers hanging off of my stern in a rubber dinghy with my Aries wind vane partially dismounted from the bracket. I will mention no nationalities here, but when threatened with a 12 gauge flare up their inner tubes, the matriarch said "Perdon Monsoir" and departed tout suite. Their boat had headed for pastures new by the morning.

 

[Symbiosis]

Why is SA characterizing this as a trend? Of the thousands of pleasure cruisers that ply waters all over the world, barely a handful have incidents at all and maybe one or two a year are violent. That's bad luck, but more akin to getting mugged in a dodgy alley.

The description of the event on SA even states it was probably NOT part of any trend: This we believe may be a one-off in special circumstances where the three Myanmar culprits escaped from a Thai fishing boat where they were been treated as slaves.

Why fuel pirate hysteria and the gun nuts?

 

[tuf-luf]

Thailand is not Burma.The muderers were likely refugees of some sort from the ongoing problems in Burma.

For the amount of poverty in that part of the world the amount of physical violence is very low. Thailand really is "The Land of Smiles" even if someone you meet has literally nothing.

Got to agree with you about Thailand, people there are great from my experience and incredibly honest

Too True. I know Thailand and have always loved the place. But, this is another nail in the coffin as a sailors destination for sure. The tourism industry down below works 100% towards the ingress of tourists, but the protection of them becomes a dim light or a non existent battery that was stolen in the first place.

What I'm basically saying is; If you can't garantee us a modicum of safety such as we garantee to you,,,,,, Then FUCK OFF, We'll go somewhere else.

Another nail in the coffin? What on earth are you talking about? When was there even a coffin built with respect to cruising/sailing in Thailand? You grossly overstate the situation!

I've been sailing there for 20 years. Gorgeous sailing grounds with beautiful, friendly people. The BURMESE who committed this senseless crime were probably beyond the edge of poverty - pushed there by their corrupt military junta government.

If you're coffin includes the problems Thailand had with protests and Bangkok airport takeover last December, then so be it and if it keep tourists away I say GOOD! It's overcrowded with fat German paedophiles and Euro-trash druggy ravers anyway. Fuck 'em.

 

[someoldsalt]

No question it was a terrible, awful thing that happened-no one could possibly feel otherwise. But, I think there needs to be some perspective here-there are what some 4 billion people or so on this planet-how many died or are murdered every single day? When an American is killed anywhere on the planet we hear all about it, when a yachtsman is killed, we yachtsmen hear all about it(I know these folks were not American)-but the truth is that these very isolated and rare incidents all around the world get a lot of press. People want to jump up and down and say don't go to Antigua, don't go to Thailand-unsafe, unsafe-

When you wander off the beaten path, and perhaps more likely when you are the beaten path even, shit can happen-sometimes some really bad shit happens and it doesn't make it OK or anything it is just part of the randomness of life - often unfair.

Sort of like the plane travel thing-statistically the safest way to travel by far-much safer than cars and even pedestrians-but when a plane crashes and a bunch of people are killed (especially if there are Americans on board), everybody freaks out and wants to shut down a plane type or an airline etc etc.

In the words of Jim Morrison-no one gets out alive-you makes your bets and you takes your chances and sometimes you just get the short straw-for no reason.

Rant over.

 

[gusmus]

Gusmus,

I am kind of amused at your change of pace here.

THEN:

Americans = gun toting homicidal xenophobes who are terrified of anything new or different from what they could find at an inland Walmart who cower on their boats terrified of all the danged furriners while cleaning their guns.

NOW:

Anger at innocent sailors abused, robbed and killed by local scumbags, desire for the local government to crack down, and admitting chasing thieves off with a firearm!

I like the NOW personsality better

Kent, I know which thread that came from and I don't deny any of it. I have never, and will never condone arming a pleasure vessel to the teeth just because we may at some point be faced with a threat. What I do condone is the right to protect yourself and your property within the means you may have at hand. If I happen apon an intruder within my house then I'll slice the bastard into tiny pieces with my best kitchen knives. That doesn't mean that I bought my kitchen utensils for that purpose. Yes, I am for the right a person has to defend both personal property and life. But, No. I am totally against the "arm yourself to the teeth" mentality to do so. Whether the perpetrators were escaped slaves or maybe just opportunists makes no difference to the outcome. An innocent family has been destroyed for whatever reason and there can be no excuse for that violent mentality. We all take risks by flaunting fancy yachts in front of empoverished locals and are running risks simply by doing so. Arming ourselves akin to Blackwater and company will never be a substitute for the envy involved in people who have nothing. We go to these impoverished places because they are cheap and can extend a years cruise into two years simply by hanging around for a while longer. In doing so we extend the risk. In the old days we used to keep an anchor watch, no matter how many crew were aboard. Had the crew of the yacht involed done so then this tragedy would probably never have happened. I don't condone the perpetrators actions in any way and, quite against my nature, I hope they string the bastards up, but, just that simple piece of "Good" seamanship , which like most others has gone by the board these days, could have saved a lot of sorrow for all concerned.