Topic 001: Piracy in Somalia

Transcription

1 Topic 001: Piracy in Somalia Introduction Since 1991, there has been a steady rise in the instances of piracy, hitting its peak in It is however, still a large industry in Somalia. The industry itself cost the global economy up to an estimated 18 billion dollars a year (CNN 2013), although some estimates put it lower. This comes from making shipping companies pay increased insurance premiums, increased security guards and increased fuel required for safer, less direct routes. Somalia has over 3300 km of coastline, the longest in Africa, giving a wide range of area for attacks to take place. With the lack of a stable government, Somalia doesn t have the required funds or organization to set up an effective coast guard, which has contributed to the problem. Piracy was identified as of Somalia s biggest industry in 2009 (WSJ 2009), however most of that money does not stay in the country. There have been many reports of wealthy piracy organizational heads transferring their assets to Kenya, where they will also buy expensive condominiums. Somalia s desperate people commonly flock to piracy due to the low technology required as well as the high payoff. Individual pirates starting off generally only carry a gun, a boat and a ladder. This can become more high tech as the pirates often become part of a larger, better funded criminal organization, which accounts for most attacks, especially in recent years. During these attacks, pirates try to avoid

2 killing people due to their value as hostages, but will not hesitate if pressed. Additionally because of the large scale of these criminal organizations along with the national corruption, those who commit attacks are rarely brought to justice. Criminal organizations also generally have contacts in major port cities that relay which ships to attack. Finally there has been a large increase in the scale of ships that pirates have attacked, as the groups become better funded. Background on Somalia since 1991 Somalia has been in decline since 1991, and has gone through long periods of time with no effective central government. After a failed peacekeeping mission in the 1990s, Abdulkassim Salat Hassam became president in 2000, before failing due to lack of support from the warlords. By 2004, Somalia tries its 14th attempt to create a government, electing Abdullahi Yusuf as president. The following year an assassination attempt is made on Ali Mohammed Ghedi. Significant conflict ensued throughout due to fighting militias and warlords, followed by a drastic spike in the terrorism of Al Shabab. Al Shabab is a terrorist organization based in both Kenya as well as Somalia. It controls much of the southern part of the nation, however does not control the any area bordering Kenya yet. Its influence can be evidenced with events as recent as February 2016, with terrorists retaking the port city of Merca. History of Piracy in Somalia After a civil war began to tear the country apart in 1991, the entirety of the government ceased to function at the effectiveness previously executed, thus prompting a series of United Nations peacekeeping mission from 1991 to During this time, with government s limited capability, thousands of foreign ships began coming into Somali waters to fish illegally. The United Nations estimates that upwards of $300 million worth of fish and other marine resources were taken by foreign ships. During this time, Somali fishermen in their desperate state began to try and run foreign ships off of their waters, which often

3 resulted in shots being fired from both sides. From here, smaller fishing ports began to morph into medium scale hubs for operations and driving away ships began to morph into the occasional ransom. These ransoms however would not be violent in nature. Instead the Somalis would blackmail the ships and would pay the Somalis not to tell governments and international organizations that the company was fishing illegally. From here the situation began escalating towards larger operations, bigger ships and a more centralized organization. While this was taking place, ships from as far as Spain and Japan continued travel to Somali waters to fish without license. This gave the pirates the much needed money to begin to fund a larger and more aggressive schemes, which resulted in the size and scale of the industry in the from Foreign ships also stopped fishing during this time due to piracy, although many ships still come to dump waste for 1% of what it would cost to dispose of it in Europe (Time 2009), resulting in problems like rashes for the Somali people living in coastal regions. However, because piracy has been decreasing over the past several years, there has been a significant spike in the instances of illegal fishing, which has caused more instances of piracy in the latter half of 2015 and the beginning of Conclusion Somali piracy is a large problem with global impacts, ranging from economic to environmental. The impacts on the increasingly globalized world are harmful, with billions of dollars being lost globally by corporations. In addition, the unstable nature of the country has allowed millions of dollars in Somali natural resources to be lost through illegal fishing and dumping of waste from foreign, often European, companies. This not only limits the the economic abilities of the populous, but can also cause expensive medical harm to those affected. In response, what began as fishermen defending their national land morphed into a series of powerful and wealthy illegal organizations, which have controlled much of the country during the last fifteen years. Although there has been a decline in piracy reports during recent

4 years, an increase in illegal fishing vessels around Somali waters could come coupled with increased piracy rates. Key Questions What are the most effective way to limit the financial gain made by these piracy organizations? How can we limit illegal activity from international corporations in Somali waters? What is the most effective way of limiting piracy (monitoring sea, patrolling ports, focus on land, etc.) Where, when determining the allocation of funds, does the humanitarian side of this issue rank? Bibliography "Key Facts Eunavfor." European Union External Action. Accessed February 05, facts and figures/. "Oceans Beyond Piracy." OBP. Accessed February 05, "One Earth Future." View OEF's 2014 Annual Report. Accessed February 05, releases 2014 annual report. Percy, Sarah, and Anja Shortland. "The Business of Piracy in Somalia." SSRN Electronic Journal SSRN Journal, doi: /ssrn "Security Council Renews Action to Fight Piracy off Somali Coast, Calling for Deployment of Vessels, Arms, Military Aircraft Meetings Coverage and Press Releases." UN News Center. Accessed February 05,

5 "Security Council Renews Measures to Combat Piracy, Armed Robbery off Somali Coast, Unanimously Adopting Resolution 2446 (2015) Meetings Coverage and Press Releases." UN News Center. Accessed February 05, "Somali Pirates." Wall Street Journal. Accessed February 06, "Somalia: Pirates Attack UN Aid Ship, Prompting Call for Action." UN News Center. May 20, Accessed February 05, "SomaliaReport." SomaliaReport. Accessed February 05, Tharoor, Ishaan. "How Somalia's Fishermen Became Pirates." Time. April 18, Accessed February 06,