Last week, the French Navy shot and killed two pirates. Yesterday, our Navy killed three more. Predictably, the Somalis are threatening violent reprisals.
For the pirates, piracy has, up until now, been a low-risk endeavor, at least after boarding the ship. The crews still get paid while they are held by the pirates, the companies make a claim to their insurers for the costs.
Not any more.
Here is what I would recommend:
First, set up a convoy system from the mouth of the Red Sea to the waters of Oman and Kenya, extending as far out into the Indian Ocean as necessary. Any vessel that sails within a convoy will be defended. Any vessel which approaches the convoy without permission would be deemed to be hostile and would be subject to being fired upon without warning.
Second, proclaim that any vessel that sails independently within those waters does so at their own risk and, if they are taken by the pirates, they are on their own. This can work with the maritime insurers if they were to make sailing outside of a convoy almost prohibitively expensive.
Third, strike at the support system for the pirates.
Shooting individual pirates may, at times, be necessary. But the idea that killing a few pirates will deter the rest is, to my mind, almost insane. Life in Somalia, which was never easy, has become brutally hard since the fall of the national government almost 20 years ago. There is no education system and very little chance for anyone to advance in life. The one who made out the best in the Maersk Alabama incident may well be the pirate who was captured and who, although facing a very long time in Federal prison, will easily outlive all of his contemporaries and will probably receive a reasonable education.
Human life is cheap in Somalia. To many young men, the risky life of a pirate is a far better choice than a hardscrabble life as a farmer or fisherman.
We and the French have opened the ball on these people. We had better be ready to go further.
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14 comments:
Frankly, the only thing that will stop piracy is a good, rich economy and stable government in the former country of Somolia. Since that is impossible given the current level of viciousness of the people in that country, the only effective solution left is to eradicate the beaches. Make them a place that no human being wants to call home and drive them inland.
Will it eliminate piracy? No, not completely. But since they have left the only choice Americans have in the event they are captured to be death... the only defense we have is to utterly destroy every man, woman, and child along the shores. Sound too much? Too inhuman? Consider this: The United States did not win the wars in World War II because we only targeted military installations. No, we won because we bombed entire cities until the other side was so demoralized that they had no choice but to beg for surrender. It's not the nicest thing to consider, but what should really scare people is that if the pirates continue to step up attacks and take/execute hostages, can you guarantee countries like China will be anywhere near as forgiving as the US?
I don't see where you can draw that conclusion.
Bombing German cities into rubble did not break the regime; only occupying the country did. Germany surrendered as the Red Army was breaking down the doors to the Fuhrerbunker.
The 20th Air Force burned nearly every Japanese city to ashes, the Navy mined the Inland Sea to starve Japan and the Japanese did not quit until we nuked two of the three cities which had been spared the fire raids (so we could nuke them).
Somalia is not a modern urban nation, unlike Japan or Germany int he 1940s. What are you proposing we do, nuke a bunch of mud-brick huts?
"Predictably, the Somalis are threatening violent reprisals."
Would you care to retract that statement?
It's not "Somalis" making the threats. "Pirates" have made the threats. But as usual, Americans don't know how or don't care to distinguish between an entire country and a few people. We just love to lump everyone together!!
Dear "ParisLove02": Don't worry, the pirates are threatening to kill your beloved countrymen, as well.
Economic Aid and rebuilding is the ONLY thing that will slow and finally halt this epidemic. If the world community are unable to assist the Somali Republic in securing their waters from dumping and overfishing - the only thing left is the 'convoy model' with protection. Seems like a waste to me. A little help goes a long way. -greendayman
GDM, the problem with economic aid is that there is no functioning government to distribute it. In order to have viable economic development, there first has to be security. Otherwise, goons with AKs will just loot everything.
So, unless we're willing to back some group that can impose order on Somalia, we're back to convoys and punitive attacks.
Dear Comrade: I'm not French!!
I think as long as insurance companies paid for taken ships, and others ponied up for personal ransoms, there was no deterrent at all. Paying is what feeds the pirate frenzy. And it has not been hazardous for them. Making it more dangerous (i.e. SHOOT them!) and NOT paying is the only way to end it. We gave aid a try...if the inhabitants of Somalia cannot "re-structure" their miserable country and rid themselves of brutal warlords, why should the nations of the world bleed in the attempt? (Black Hawk Down was more than a movie!)
I disagree with labrys6 for a variety of reasons not the least being that deterrents to this type of behavior never work. Obviously by the tone of the post "..miserable country.." labrys6 has only contempt for any process that doesn't kill and intimidate. Where have we heard this before? Shock and Awe anyone? How well did that turn out. Check out this post for intelligent solutions that don't include trying to kill everyone: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-naiman/forget-accountability-for_b_186580.html
Frankly, I was not in favor of "shock and awe" and my statement of Somalia being miserable was literal---it is a country immersed in misery ever since it lost all effective self-government. But that doesn't mean the rest of the world need put up with piracy because the country is foundering. And I did not say to kill "everyone"...but that HAS been the traditional response to pirates and I think it much better than urging more of the same by making it safe and profitable for them to proceed. Before you make assumptions about my entire meaning, you might bother to find out more about exactly what I meant or what I stand for.
Well said labrys6. As you can see, this issue has gotten under my skin and I tend to be passionate. Did you check out the Naiman article?
Yes, I did. I can't say it much impressed me. To say one is not in favor of accountability strikes me as ignorant. And for him to blather on about the U.S. not adequately pursuing non-violent resolution also strikes me as ignorant. Pirates are not Orlando Bloom or Johnny Dep; their idea of non-violent is violently taking what they want and others non-violently paying their piper. It is scarcely to their credit that they "treat hostages well"....keeping people against their will is NOT acceptable behavior.
Well.. I can see this is going nowhere. The "pirates" are in my mind a secondary issue compared to addressing the socio-economic problems that exacerbate the lawlessness to begin with. You can't punish these people into compliance. It doesn't work with me and it doesn't work with you why should it work with them? Russ Feingold quote,“People are talking about this as a piracy issue,” Mr. Feingold said in a telephone interview. “That is not the core issue here. It is a symptom of a disunified government.” Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/14/world/africa/14pirates.html?_r=1
Perhaps the reason it is going nowhere is that we appear to be addressing two issues. I am addressing how to deal with piracy, pure and simple. You want the overarching issue of Somalia fixed first. That is admirable, but does absolutely nothing for those who risk their lives in the shipping lanes off Somalia. There is, btw, nothing that says both issues cannot be addressed separately and simultaneously. One need not foster piracy to aid Somalia.
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