Somali piracy has surged over the last four years. In 2011 alone, pirates operating
in the Gulf of Aden cost the global economy more than 7 billion dollars. The
international community has responded by sending naval ships to the region.
Dozens of national navies now coordinate to protect shipping routes. The UN
also has gotten involved—passing Security Council resolutions and issuing
reports on piracy.
The results? Disappointing. There are fewer successful Somali pirate attacks,
but pirate ransoms have skyrocketed. They now charge five times what they did
a few years ago to release a hijacked vessel. And while low-level pirates are
often captured, pirate leaders act with impunity. Somali pirate kingpins appear
to be diversifying their revenue streams by turning to land-based kidnappings
and selling services as so-called "counter-piracy experts."
That's why the UN is calling for targeted travel and financial sanctions on
senior pirate leaders.
But some countries worry sanctions would make piracy more violent. Britain
argues that by making it more difficult to meet pirate demands quickly, UN sanctions
could imperil British hostages.
Some experts warn that it is ransom payments that make piracy such a rewarding
business. Moreover, they say British opposition to UN sanctions is rooted less
in its concern for hostage safety, than in the lobbying efforts of maritime
security firms, which indirectly profit from a booming pirate trade. Still others
argue the only way to diminish piracy is to improve the political and economic
climate in the failed state of Somalia, creating legitimate sources of income.
The dilemma has clear ethical connotations. Will sanctions make piracy more
violent? Will they help deter piracy, by punishing the ringleaders? Or should
the international community be focusing on the underlying problems in Somalia?
By Marlene
Spoerri
For more information see
"Somali
pirate kingpins enjoy 'impunity' - U.N. experts," Reuters, July 18,
2012
James Pattison, "The
War on Somali Piracy," Ethics & International Affairs, May
31, 2012
Eugene Kontorovich, "The Piracy Prosecution Paradox Political and Procedural
Problems with Enforcing Order on the High Seas," Georgetown
Journal of International Affairs, June 5, 2012 http://journal.georgetown.edu/13-2/
Photo Credits in Order of Appearance:
Mass
Communication Specialist 1st Class Eric L. Beauregard/U.S. Navy [also for
picture 10]
Photographer's
Mate 1st Class Bart Bauer/U.S. Navy
Pete
Souza/White House
Mass
communication Specialist 2nd Class Jason R. Zalasky/U.S. Navy [also for
pictures 6
and 9]
Commander,
U.S. Pacific Fleet/U.S. Navy
Karine
Langlois/International Maritime Organization
Mattias
Gugel/Medill
Stuart
Price/UN [also for picture 13]
Cassandra
Thompson/U.S. Navy
