Maritime Piracy in Nigeria - Causes, and Lack of Control - Dissertation Example

Download file to see previous pages This research study concludes that piracy along Nigeria’s coast is a result of economic, social, and political marginalization. It is also concluded that in general, piracy occurs so frequently in Nigeria’s coastal waters because there is a lack of shared information relative to incidents of a robbery at sea and a general lack of concern for the economic value of Nigeria’s coastal waters. Maritime piracy in Nigeria is also a result of a general lack of knowledge relative to the maritime paradigm, a lack of competence relative to providing early warnings, and a lack of patrol capabilities.
Chapter One/Introduction

Introduction/Overview
In 2010, the ICC International Maritime Bureau reported that there were approximately 39 piracy attacks near West Africa’s coast with 19 incidents occurring off the coast of Lagos, Nigeria. Altogether, 13 ships were boarded and four “were fired upon”. In its most recent report, the ICC International Maritime Bureau reports that piracy around Nigeria is concentrated off the coast of Lagos. For the most part, pirates frequently use violence and are known to attack and rob vessels and kidnap their crews. Moreover, the ICC International Maritime Bureau warns that:

Generally, all waters in Nigeria remain risky. Vessels are advised to be vigilant as many attacks may have gone unreported.
Although piracy has been on the increase over the last four years, it is not new to the international community and certainly not new to the coast of Nigeria. For example, in 1979, the MV Linda Ivory, a Danish cargo vessel, was attacked three miles off Lagos. During the attack, the attackers murdered the master and threw his body into the sea, and injured the entire crew while taking the ship’s cargo.

Commentators reported that attacks in the Niger Delta in particular from 2006 and 2009 were politically motivated as they were conducted by militants dissatisfied with “political marginalisation and the lack of economic opportunity”. One attack included a raid conducted by the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta. The assault targeted the Bonga Field, an offshore oil refinery plant located 65 miles off Nigeria’s coast. The raid was only contained after the government of Nigeria provided amnesty to the pirates.

Many of the piracy incidents involving assaults on the international community’s ships are usually motivated by pure criminal conduct. The damages to the ships and the personnel abroad the ships and their economic loss are not the only consequences of piracy. The cost for the international community is excessive. For instance, shipping costs increase, delays are created as ships opt for longer routes, insurance rates increase and the cost is transferred to the consumer. In Nigeria, the impact is just as devastating as there is a negative impact on the oil sector and domestic fisheries and trade in general is negatively impacted.

According to Nigeria’s Maritime Security Task Force on Acts of Illegality in Nigerian Waters, between 2003 and 2008 there were at least 293 attacks on Nigerian fishing vessels. ...Download file to see next pages Read More