The Indonesian archipelago sits astride key shipping routes that carry a large share of the world's seaborne trade between the Indian and Pacific oceans. Most international interest in maritime security in recent years has focused on the Malacca and Singapore straits, but shipping elsewhere in the Indonesian archipelago, particularly that passing through the Lombok and Makassar straits, is potentially vulnerable to attack. It is ironic that while most interest has focused on the vessels passing through or near the Indonesian archipelago, the real problem of security is the more grassroots one of protecting vessels trading locally, or those in port or at anchor (Bateman, Ho and Mathai 2007: 311).

As international attention on piracy has shifted to the waters off Somalia, Indonesia no longer has the ‘most pirate-infested waters in the world’ (Storey 2008: 106). The threat of piracy and armed robbery against ships in Indonesian waters has declined considerably in recent years. From 121 incidents reported by the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) in 2003, accounting for about 27 per cent of the world total, the annual number of incidents in Indonesian waters fell steadily to 28 incidents, or less than 9 per cent of the world total, in 2008 (IMB 2009: 5, Table 1). In 2003, Southeast Asia was the most piracy-prone area in the world, with 189 incidents out of a total of 445 actual and attempted attacks worldwide. The IMB annual report for 2003 noted that the north Sumatra/Aceh coast was ‘particularly risky’, with numerous violent attacks reported during the year (IMB 2004: 15).

There are several reasons for the improvement. First, the decline in the number of attacks around Sumatra and adjacent areas of the Malacca Strait appears to be largely due to the improved political situation onshore following the peace agreement in 2005 between the Indonesian government and the Free Aceh Movement (Gerakan Aceh Merdeka, or GAM). The fall in the number of attacks off northern Sumatra, particularly off the port of Belawan near Medan, has confirmed suspicions that elements of GAM were involved in piracy and sea robbery. On the basis of extensive research on attacks on fishing vessels attributed to the key fishing community of Hutan Melintang on the west coast of peninsular Malaysia, Malaysian maritime security analyst Mak Joon Num asserts that until 2005 members of GAM were heavily involved in organized piracy, including a maritime protection syndicate.