The chief executive of a Connecticut-based shipping company who just months ago successfully negotiated with Somali pirates for the release of his hijacked crew said the keys to such discussions are patience and mutual respect.
James Christodoulou, president and CEO of Stamford-based Industrial Shipping Enterprises Corp., said he turned his Hoboken, N.J., apartment into a crisis command center after pirates seized the 28-member crew of the MV Biscaglia on Nov. 28.
“The one thing you don’t want to do is sacrifice safety for speed,” said Christodoulou, whose crew was held for 56 days off the Somali coast. “These things take time. You have to develop mutual trust with the pirates so that they will abide by the terms of the agreement and not renege.”
The pirates were explicit from the onset that they wanted a ransom from the Spain-bound vessel carrying palm oil. Christodoulou worked out the details by phone with two pirates.
The exchanges were complicated by spotty satellite phone service and the pirates’ rudimentary English.
“Leaving all the ego, anger and testosterone out of it we understood from the Somalis that this was very much like a commercial transaction for them and we wanted to keep it polite and we wanted to keep it respectful,” he said.
The captivity was a harrowing ordeal for the family members of the crew, who hailed from India and Bangladesh. The grandmother of one crew member embarked upon a hunger strike. Christodoulou flew to Mumbai, India, to meet with her and other families.
The company agreed to pay more than $1 million in ransom, which was packed into plastic tubing and parachuted onto the vessel from a plane. The pirates disembarked after dividing up the cash.
“As this crisis is unfolding, we know that the real cost is the human cost,” Christodoulou said. “Captain Phillips’ family and the families of all of his fellow mariners that are being held captive should know that they have so many people around the world working around the clock to secure their freedom.” |
