The Solution to Piracy off the Coast of Somalia Lies on Land - Essay Example

? The solution to piracy off the coast of Somalia lies on land not at sea Introduction As far as common perception goes, piracy is one of the vestiges of the Middle Ages. In modern times, we usually find terminologies like pirate and dacoit been deported to myths and folk tales. But in a country like Somalia, this is not the case. The failure to have a stable governance since last few decades, the resulting chaos and the extreme poverty which has become the reality of an average Somali citizen have taken their toll on the realization of a modern society in this country1. This is why, off the shores of Somalia, the threat of piracy has cast its frightening shadow. These waters being one of the international trade routes, the problem has become a head ache, not to the Somalis, but to global commerce. While trying to find solutions to this problem, all the focus has been on surveillance at sea. But this paper tries to refocus the whole issue upon the basic political realities of this nation which has become a constant breeding ground for pirates. The state of Somalia is located in the Horn of Africa, and is bordered on the west by Ethiopia, Kenya in the southwest, Djibouti in the northwest, while the waters of the Gulf of Aden lie to its north, and the Indian Ocean bordering its eastern coastline. Somalia was well known during the time of the antiquities, when it had successful trade relations with the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, Babylon and many others2. Later in the 20th century, Somalia played an important role during Cold War, primarily under the Soviet influence. However, in the recent times the country has witnessed some of the worst civil wars, along with a rise in Islamic insurgency. Somalia’s present economic and political orders are in a complete state of disquiet, owing to the ceaseless civil conflicts. After 14 failed transitional governments, Somalia is now dubbed a “failed state.” Failed economic conditions and an unstable, volatile political order of this country, have forced many of its citizens to earn their livelihood through various illegal means. Of this, the maritime piracies off the high seas, near the Somalia coast, has turned into a major international problem, owing to increased instances of hijacking of large merchant ships by the Somali pirates, in a bid to earn ransom money. A common observation among social scientists has been that, “the Somali piracy ‘industry’ is a direct consequence of the 1991 collapse of the country’s last functioning national government.”3 In this article, my attempt is to examine the background that has led to this increase in piracy off the coast of Somalia, to study the present situation of this piracy and the various reactions of the international communities and to offer viable solutions apart from the sea-based conventional solutions. This analysis will also discuss various workable solutions as suggested by various naval heads and other international organizations like the UNSC, NATO, and EUNAVFOR; all of which primarily advocate that, results of naval actions would not serve to be a permanent long term explication; as most of the experts feel that the solution to piracy off the coast of Somalia lies on land, and not at sea.4 Discussion Statistical data show that “there were 115 reported pirate attacks off the coast of Somalia in 2008…[and]…of those attacks, 46 resulted in the seizure of a commercial vessel by Somali pirates. The average ransom for the release of hijacked vessels increased from $1 million US dollars in July of 2008, to $1.5 million by December.”5 These figures show the graveness of the problem, which is leading to serious implications on the future of trade and commerce, via the Gulf of Aden route. This route is used by, at an average count, almost 20000 ships annually, and records show that maximum number of merchant ships have been attacked by the Somali pirates in this region6. Owing to this risk many of the trading vessels have been forced to avoid this area and take a longer but safer alternative route, round the Cape of Good Hope.7 As Biegon tells us: The increased threat of maritime piracy has heightened the shipping industry's financial concerns in the context of the global economic recession. Over 6.8 billion tons of goods are moved by sea annually in a global trade cycle worth $7.4 trillion, with up to 90% of international trade travelling by ship at some point. The wave of pirate attacks off the eastern coast of Africa has already had a major impact on global shipping patterns. Following the hijacking of the Sirius Star, for example, AP Moller-Maersk, Europe's largest shipping company, diverted its fleet of 50 oil tankers away from the Suez Canal towards the longer and more expensive route around the Cape of Good Hope.” 8 The seriousness of the problem becomes even more apparent when we find that the International Maritime Bureau has already declared, “The situation is out of control”9. In this context we will now explore the concept of maritime piracy and also closely examine the background history of piracy in Somalia, and find out the reasons behind this current problem. Concept of maritime piracy in Somalia context: The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) has legally defined piracy as: a) any illegal acts of violence or detention, or any act of depradation committed for private ends by the crew or the passengers of a private ship of a private aircraft and directed; 1) On the high seas, against another ship or aircraft, or against persons or property on board such ship or aircraft; 2) Against a ship, aircraft, persons or property in a place outside the jurisdiction of any state b) Any act of voluntary participation in the operation of a ship or of an aircraft with knowledge of facts making it a pirate ship or aircraft.10 For the Somali pirates, it is more the foreign crew than the goods aboard a trading vessel, which form the valuable merchandise, because they hijack the crew to avail a ransom.11 The modus operandi of these well organized and well armed pirate groups are as follows, “Many…Somali gangs, are using larger "mother ships" to reach deeper ocean waters before creeping up on ships with smaller boats and boarding them using grappling hooks and ladders.”12 The piracy problem has led to a large outcry for better sea patrolling by navy forces from the various neighbouring countries that share the Indian Ocean waters; and also for the capture of these pirates by UNSC, NATO, and the US army. Naval reactions: Various naval efforts have been there to contain piracy where “the United Nations, the European Union (EU), the African Union, the Arab League, and NATO are collaborating to influence the risk-and-reward analysis of Somali pirates…[and]… a wide range of countries…. are cooperating to broadly address the issue as well,”13 On January 14, 2009 The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia comprising of many members states, was created (following the UN Security Council Resolution of 1851), in order to fight against this rising sea menace.14 The anti-pirate operations are also jointly coordinated by naval forces from the Combined Task Force 150 (CTF-150) of India, Russia, and China. Europe, also has an important role in this regards, and the European Union (13 members states have taken part) launched the EU NAVFOR Somalia - Operation Atlanta, aimed to combat Somalia piracy. However, these large scale naval efforts have not yielded much result, as we have already seen in the recent rise in piracy instances off the Somalia waters. The trade routes have been too vast to monitor completely and the expenses involved have been monstrously high. Factors contributing to the many instances of piracy off the coast of Somalia: In late 1970s, Somalia had received support from USSR to fight Ethiopia and after the Cold War when the USSR disintegrated it received strategic support for a while, from US. However, Somalia failed in its endeavour against Ethiopia, and soon after the end of the Cold War, it lost its strategic importance as far as the superpowers, US and Russia were concerned. Being suddenly bereft of its powerful friends, and left to fend for itself, Somalia’s political order completely disintegrated, and its economy went spiralling down. The country fell into a vortex of violent civil war, ethnic clashes, and finally witnessed the rise of Islamic fundamentalism. After Mohamed Siad Barre fell from power in 1991, “the country, stocked with military weapons, was overrun by warlords whose clans turned on each other…..The country was in chaos, with rival sociological groups, armed to the teeth, tearing the country apart.”15 During this time US along with UN, tried sending humanitarian aid to Somalia, while also attempting to bring the warring tribal lords under control, but failed, and it resulted in the deaths of 18 US soldiers, which made US leave the country in a hurry. After the exit of US from the scene, many groups from the Middle-East countries entered Somalia in order to take control, and they brought along with them, the Wahhabi sect, a fanatical Islamic group; and by 2005, Shabab, a fanatical Islamic faction, had gained strong footholds in many regions of the country, and soon a Council of Islamic Courts took over Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia.16 Complete chaos ensued and violence became the order of the day, and Somalia became a pictorial representation of what is defined as a failed state, “When state failure sets in, the balance of power shifts ominously against ordinary civilians and in favor of armed entities operating outside the law.17” In 2006, the Islamic Court Council was however removed by the Ethiopian forces that were being supported by the US; and another UN backed and internationally approved transitional government was established, the 14th since 1991.18 Soon enough, without adequate support, this unstable government nearly collapsed, and finally Yusuf, the President of this transitional government, resigned in late 2008. 2009 brought in further bad news when with the election of Sheikh Sharif as the head of yet another transitional government, witnessed the Shabab regaining control of the southern regions of Somalia, rendering thousands homeless. As Zapotoczny sums up the entire situation, “in April 2009, reasons for optimism were all but entirely gone when fighting on the streets of Mogadishu reached what the International Committee of the Red Cross called the worst levels in 15 years. In addition to the staggering death toll, the bloody battles have displaced an estimated 400,000 residents of Mogadishu.”19 It was out of this social disaster that piracy sprouted out as a new phenomenon. The process was like this, “Lack of [proper] government resulted in a generation that did not find education, that did not find employment, that did not find a way to learn the good traditions and customs of the Somali people. The hunger, poverty and refugees all had an impact on the new generation that grew up since.” 20 Another provocation resulted from that “European firms had been dumping toxic waste along the Somali shoreline, further affecting fish stocks and leading to illness in local populations.”21 The predecessors of pirates were merely the poor local fishermen who were trying to protect the waters around Somalia, from the hands of foreign fishing trawlers and dumping vessels, which were blatantly conducting their illegal activities on Somalia waters.22 While fending off these illegal foreign vessels, soon the young local men from Somalia learned that hijacking commercial ships brought in more easy money, than did fishing.23 With each passing day as more ships were hijacked and ransom acquired from various foreign nations in millions of dollars, it enticed other jobless young Somalia men to enter piracy.24 At present, the conditions are so bad, it has been seen that nowadays entire villages are taking part in this organized crime; while the pirates are looked upon as ‘heroes,’ since in Somalia they are the only ones that are earning profitably through their ‘business ventures.’ United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon has said, “the lack of enforcement capacity and resources to address the problem of piracy off the coast of Somalia, however, are of major concern not only to Somalia, but to some of the other most affected littoral States of the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden...In the long run, ---[a solution]…can be achieved with a stable Somali Government capable of effectively controlling its territory and seas … in the long term the issue of piracy and armed robbery at sea off the coast of Somalia will be resolved only through an integrated approach that addresses the conflict, lack of governance and absence of sustainable livelihoods on land in Somalia.”25 Solutions: Murphy has aptly summarized the solutions to the piracy problem in a wider perspective, “Somali piracy is linked intimately to Somali politics. The criminals who organize piracy are connected to Somalia’s fractured political authorities….Only by dealing with political groups ashore will the incentive for piracy and its motivation be tempered and possibly eliminated”26 Only when political stability is achieved in this way, can there be effective implementation of law and order in the country to prevent unlawful activities like piracy. In this context, it is for agencies like UN, Arab League and the African Union to intervene to establish democratic order and economic stability in the country. Murphy has also suggested that US make more active political and diplomatic intervention in Somalia by creating a US headed international coalition to negotiate with “sub-state entities” like Puntland and Somaliland which are part of Somalia but yet functioning independently.27 Through such negotiations, some order could be restored in this divided nation and the people could be given an opportunity to live in peace and make an earning out of legal means. The outcome of these negotiations is also expected to be, “more effective land-based policing by the Somalis coordinated with maritime policing by coalition member navies.”28 Some other US-initiated solutions have been put forward by Abukar Arman, an expert on this subject, which include: 3) Introduce a U.N. resolution banning the dumping chemical waste in Somali waters and banning the illegal hyper-fishing off of the Somali coast. 4) Introduce a U.N. resolution that mandates a massive international effort to clean the countless barrels and containers of radioactive materials dumped in Somali waters. 5) Sign a security treaty with the Somali unity government. This would not only mark the first time the United States signed any treaty with Somalia, but it would send a peace message to the rest of the Muslim world that America is indeed ready to establish formal relationship with anyone on issues of mutual interest. 6) Help build a Somali navy to protect its own waters.29 Once the toxic dumping and illegal fishing by foreign vessels are checked, the Somali fishermen could have a sustainable livelihood. The local economy can thrive on the fishing and associated industries and the need to take up risky unlawful activities would end. Provided the international community give financial support to complete this process, the life of a pirate would become less lucrative for the average Somali youth. Giving recognition to the semi-independent territories, Puntland and Somaliland of Somalia as independent nations and strengthening their naval capabilities has been yet another solution offered.30 In this regard, one major achievement has been that “in January 2010, at a technical meeting on counter-piracy in Kampala, the Transitional Federal Government, “Puntland” and “Somaliland” agreed to establish a three-member technical committee, Somali contact group on counter-piracy, to coordinate the activities of their respective counter-piracy offices.”31 This agreement was reached upon under the combine efforts of the United Nations Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS), IMO, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Food and Agriculture Organization, INTERPOL and the European Police Office (Europol).32 The UN initiated Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia has been trying to “strengthen the legal capacity of Governments in the region, including the interim Somali government” which is also viewed as a part of the solution.33 Creation of “an exclusive economic zone off the Somali coast, in which fishermen could fish for their own livelihood” has been initiated with support from the Contact Group and Somali government which is a very important step in the right direction.34 It is out of the realization that the real solution lies on land that UN Security Council had authorized states and regional organisations formed to fight piracy to use land-based operations in Somalia to thwart piracy problem.35 The council had also observed that “strengthening the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) through, among other things, the provision of financing, logistical support, necessary training and equipment and other reinforcements, facilitated by the United Nations and Member States, was the realistic option at present.”36 This mission is supposed to provide humanitarian aid and explore financial opportunities for the nation. Somali President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has also asserted that the solution to the problem lies in confronting the pirates on land with a strengthened Somali police force as all “the pirates live on land.”37 Some tactical solutions being discussed also include “amphibian attacks” on pirate cities by UN or US led marines which has the advantage of leaving no footprints on land.38 This suggestion has been based on the fact that a totally sea-based solution is not at all realistic. An urgent need felt by the stake holders has been that “further international assistance is…needed to strengthen the capacity of countries in the region…[for]… training prosecutors, refurbishing courts and prisons.”39 This would ensure that the caught pirates do not go unpunished and join their bands again. Transitional Federal Government, “Somaliland” and “Puntland” have also approved the draft of an anti-piracy law for Somalia which again is part of a land-based answers approach.40 But again, what could be a long term remedy is “social and economic programs to reconstruct” Somalia.41 Conclusion: From the above discourse it becomes very clear that the problem of Somalia piracy has been created owing to the country’s instability and social backwardness. Piracy is a mere reflection of the wider problems that are seen in inland Somalia, and the only long term solution would be to create a stable government and establish the rule of law, while finding alternative means of earning for the common people. Thus, one can safely conclude that the solution to piracy off the coast of Somalia lies on land and not only at the sea. Bibliography Arman, A. April 29, 2009. Non-military solutions to the Somali Piracy Dilemma. Worldpress.org, Retrieved from http://www.worldpress.org/Africa/3342.cfm Bedford, C. August 12, 2008. Piracy in Somalia: Why Solutions Can’t be Found at Sea. David Pugliese’s Military Articles. Retrieved from http://davidpugliese.wordpress.com/2008/08/12/piracy-in-somalia-why-solutions-cant- be-found-at-sea/ Biegon, R. January 29th 2009. Somali Piracy and the International Response. Regions/ Africa. Retrieved from, http://www.fpif.org/articles/somali_piracy_and_the_international_response Chester, C. 2008. “Engaging Failing State.” In, International Security Studies Course book, by Sharon McBride (Ed.). Maxwell AFB, AL: Air University Press, 253. Costa, A.M. June 9 2010. The War on Piracy Must Start on Land. International Herald Tribune. Hayong, M. November 10, 2010. Press Conference by Contact Group on Piracy off Coast of Somalia. Retrieved from http://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs/2010/101110_Piracy.doc.htm Luke, L. 2010. Peak Piracy Season Here Again; Solutions Lie on Land, Not Water. Perth: Future Directions International Pty. (independent strategic analysis of Australia’s Global Interest). Retrieved from, http://www.futuredirections.org.au/admin/uploaded_pdf/1271915320-FDI%20Strategic%20Analysis%20Paper%20-%2022%20April%202010.pdf. Lennox, P. December 2008. Contemporary Piracy off the Horn of Africa. Canadian Defense and Foreign Affairs Institute. Retrieved from, http://qaranimo.com/2009/feb/Contemporary_Piracy_off_the_Horn_of_Africa.pdf May, L. 18th November 2008. History of Piracy on the High Seas. The Independent World. [Internet news article] Retrieved from, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/history-of-piracy-on-the-high-seas-1023701.html Moylan, C. 2009. Piracy the Somali Way. Air Command and Staff College Air University, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama. AU/ACSC/MOYLAN/2009-04, Retrieved from,  https://www.afresearch.org/skins/rims/q_mod_be0e99f3-fc56-4ccb-8dfe 670c0822a153/q_act_downloadpaper/q_obj_4c67b15a-2bb9-4321-87b7-06fd778c4a2c/display.aspx?rs=enginespage. Murphy, M. 16th April 2009. Somali Piracy: Not Just a Naval Problem. Centre for strategic and Budgetary Assessment. Backgrounder. Retrieved from, http://www.csbaonline.org/4Publications/PubLibrary/B.20090417.Somali_Piracy/B.20090417.Somali_Piracy.pdf. Pritchett, R. April 24, 2009. Tactical Options for Fighting Somali Pirates. Atlantic Council. Retrieved from http://www.acus.org/new_atlanticist/tactical-options- fighting-somali-pirates Report of AFP. April 22, 2009. Somali president says piracy solution on land not sea. Retrieved from http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iVUOqc8MCRdAcAF80N8iwLBcpubQ Report of the Secretary-General pursuant to Security Council resolution 1846 (2008).16 March 2009. United Nations Organization: New York, ss.48 & 59. Report on the briefing of the Secretary-General pursuant to Security Council resolution 1851. December 16, 2008.. United Nations Organization: New York, Retrieved from http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2008/sc9541.doc.htm Report of the Secretary-General pursuant to Security Council resolution 1897 (2009). October 27, 2010. United Nations Security Council. Retrieved from http://unpos.unmissions.org/Portals/UNPOS/Repository%20UNPOS/S-2010-556%20(27OCT10).pdf Rose, J., and Hulburd, J. 1993.  The aromatherapy book: applications & inhalations. California: North Atlantic Books, 94. Somalia at a Crossroads and the Duty of the International Community. 2010. Address given by, HE Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, President of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia to the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, London. Stavridis, J. and Lieutenant Commander LeBron, R. Autumn 2010. Taming the Outlaw Sea. Naval War College Review, Vol. 63, No. 4, 74. US Department of State. 2010. Contact Group on Piracy off the coast of Somalia. Retrieved from, http://www.state.gov/t/pm/ppa/piracy/contactgroup/index.htm Verros, F. June 10, 2010. Press Conference by Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia. Retrieved from http://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs/2010/100610_Piracy.doc.htm Ward, T. 2009. Piracy in Somalia: Interbehavioral Assessment and Intervention. Advance Online Publication. Retrieved from, http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/bsi/article/view/2497/2398. Zapotoczny, W. 2009. Explanation of the Reasons for the Rise of Somali Piracy. The Rise of Somali Piracy. Retrieved from,  http://www.wzaponline.com/Piracy.pdf Read More