Safety of hostages top priority: Security minister

Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Djoko Suyanto says the government will prioritize the safe return of 20 crewmen of the MV Sinar Kudus cargo ship who have been held hostage by Somali pirates.

The ship carrying ferronickel was taken hostage on its way to Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

“It is our wish to free them immediately. The President is also very concerned about this,” Djoko said Wednesday.

He added that negotiations were underway between the owner of the ship, PT Samudra Indonesia, and the pirates. The government has also proposed several methods for the release of hostages.

Djoko further added that the government would continue to work with PT Samudra Mas, since this was the party holding the latest information on the condition of the crew.

“The latest communication was between the pirates and owner of the ship last night,” he added, as reported by tempointeraktif.com.