By Danielle Johnson
According to a Time article written by Ishaan Tharoor on April 18, these Somali Pirates that have caused such a whirlwind in the media are not ‘desperate bandits’. The article reported that experts are saying these pirates are “savvy opportunists in the most lawless corner of the planet.”
The article also said the Somali pirates have never been the only ones taking advantage of the vulnerabilities of this troubled failed state and that they are a ‘product of the rest of the world’s neglect’.
In 2006, a United Nations report said that because of the lack of Somali coastguards, that Somali waters had become the ‘site of an international free for all’ where fishing fleets from around the world are illegally fishing and essentially stealing food from the mouths of the Somalis.
A different United Nations article reported that about 300 million dollars worth of seafood is stolen from the Somalia coastline each year. According to the Times article, Peter Lehr, a lecturer in terrorism studies at Scotland’s University of St. Andrews, said that “the first pirate gangs emerged in the ‘90s to protect against foreign travelers.”
Aside from illegal fishing, foreign ships have been dumping toxic wastes onto Somali shores, according to a news video on Somali pirates. The video pointed out that Somali pirates see themselves as unofficial coastguards who feel obligated to protect their country’s shoreline.
According to several online sources, the growth of Somali pirates began in the early 1900’s when the Somali civil war broke out. Some of the pirates are former fishermen that argue foreign ships are threatening their livelihood.
After experiencing the profitability of piracy, because ransoms are usually paid, Somali’s turn to piracy in order to make profits while protecting their coast. Through interception with speedboats, Somali fishermen have tried to levy a tax on the foreigners who are illegally fishing and dumping toxic wastes in Somali waters.
Western State Writers Spring 2009 