KARACHI: As the lives of 29 Pakistani fishermen hang in the balance after their vessel was hijacked reportedly by Somali pirates last Sunday, Pakistani authorities are still clueless about the authenticity of the reports and unable to initiate any effort for their safe release.

The owner of Shah Zeb, the hijacked vessel, learnt about the incident only about two days ago from international sources and sounded concerned about the fate of his workers.

‘We were first informed by some fishermen who returned from their voyage two-three days ago,’ said Momin Khan, the manager of the fishing company which owns Shah Zeb.

All the 29 people on board are the employees of the company. ‘They claimed to have seen our boat being pulled by the pirate ship,’ Mr Khan said.

‘We were in the dark till Wednesday when we received calls from Iran’s and Bahrain’s naval authorities that our vessel had been hijacked by Somali pirates.’

Mr Khan expressed grave concern about the safety of his 29 men on board, saying that he was informed by Iran’s and Bahrain’s naval authorities that all the men were safe.

‘But how can we believe when we haven’t talked to them directly?’ Mr Khan wondered.

‘Local authorities have also assured us about the safe return of our men, but we have seen nothing on the ground which can substantiate such claims,’ he said.

Captained by Shah Fayyaz, the fishing vessel Shah Zeb carried 29 Pakistanis, who mainly belonged to the NWFP.

However, the authorities have yet to track any link between the hijacked vessel and its Gwadar-based owner, who is said to be contacting several officials for help.

The spokesperson for the European Union’s anti-piracy force announced last week that Somali pirates had hijacked a Pakistan-flagged fishing vessel.

Commander John Harbour said that the pirates seized the MV Shah Zeb last week, which carried 29 crew members.

Activities of Somali pirates have remained at high levels this year despite a growing number of international warships and extra safety measures taken by merchant vessels.

The African country does not have a coastguard or navy to stop the pirates because it has not had an effective central government for the past 18 years.

Brief interviews with senior officials suggest that both the provincial and federal authorities have been unable to initiate any effort for the release of the Pakistani nationals or activate diplomatic channel efforts.

‘We have not yet ascertained whether the fishing vessel which has been hijacked is really from Pakistan? We don’t know yet,’ said Federal Ports and Shipping Minister Babar Ghori.

‘No vessel with the name of Shah Zeb is registered with MMD [Marine Mercantile Department]. So, there are chances that it may belong to Balochistan where fishermen normally avoid registration,’ he said.

He said that formal efforts would start for the release of the hostage fishermen once the ministry confirmed the authenticity of this information and when Pakistani link to the hijacked boat was established.

A similar response was given by Sindh Fisheries Minister Zahid Ali Bhurgari who said that a committee under the provincial secretary of his ministry was look-ing into the matter and tracing the links of the boat’s owners and its current location.

‘We hope that we will acquire the information within a day or two,’ he said, adding that ‘then we would definitely approach the federal government, which will take up the issue on diplomatic levels. Currently the situation is not clear and we are trying to make it clear through getting all relevant information,’ he said.