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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue
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Results for pirates/piracy
39 results foundAuthor: International Expert Group on Piracy off the Somali Coast Title: Piracy Off the Somali Coast: Workshop Commissioned by the Special Representative of the Secretary General of the UN to Somalia Ambassador Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah Summary: In order to develop a coordinated response to the challenge of maritime piracy along the Somali coast, the United Nations Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS) commissioned an international expert consultation on the issue. The consultation took place in Nairobi from the 10th to the 21st of November. It was supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Somalia and hosted by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Nairobi. The international group consisted of private experts, national officials and representatives of international organizations covering expertise in organized crime, maritime law, Navy operations, risk management, migration management, marine contingency management, state of law, development and livelihoods, humanitarian relief, peace keeping and security sector reform. Many of the experts possess expertise and experience in Somalia as well as in neighboring countries and seas. The assessment aimed at providing a practical interdisciplinary overview on piracy rather than a comprehensive analysis of all aspects of piracy in Somalia. The report starts off with a short history on Somalia (chapter 1) and a general chapter on piracy in international waters (chapter 2). This is followed by an assessment on the piracy situation off the Somali coast (chapter 3), its legal framework (chapter 4), and the costs associated with the phenomenon (chapter 5). Chapter 6 lists the additional costs to Somalia, the region and the international community, of allowing the situation to escalate without international intervention, on land and sea. Chapter 7 summarizes what is currently being done to address the problem and the final chapter (chapter 8) provides a summary of recommendations for short-, medium- and long-term impact. The detailed recommendations are listed in an Appendix. Details: Nairobi: International Expert Group on Piracy off the Somali Coast, 2008. 92p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 23, 2010 at: http://www.imcsnet.org/imcs/docs/somalia_piracy_intl_experts_report_consolidated.pdf Year: 2008 Country: Somalia URL: http://www.imcsnet.org/imcs/docs/somalia_piracy_intl_experts_report_consolidated.pdf Shelf Number: 119847 Keywords: Maritime CrimeOrganized CrimePirates/Piracy |
Author: Mulugeta, Kidist Title: Piracy Off the Somali Coast Summary: The aim of this brief is to determine the threat of piracy in the coastal waters of Somalia. The brief in divided into five parts. The definition and historical development of worldwide piracy will be examined in the first section. The second part explores the causes and consequences of piracy in Somalia. Herein, the danger of maritime Piracy to international navigation will be investigated. The third part examines the international response in combating and controlling this threat. The fourth part analyzes major challenges encountered in combating piracy. Finally, various possible options for combating maritime piracy will be forwarded. Details: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: InterAfrica Group, Center for Dialogue on Humanitarian, Peace and Development Issues in the Horn of Africa, 2009. 17p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 2, 2010 at: http://interafricagroup.org/pdf/Human%20Security%20Program/Briefing13%20on%20Piracy%20off%20the%20Socali%20coast.pdf Year: 2009 Country: Africa URL: http://interafricagroup.org/pdf/Human%20Security%20Program/Briefing13%20on%20Piracy%20off%20the%20Socali%20coast.pdf Shelf Number: 120347 Keywords: Maritime CrimePiratesPirates/Piracy |
Author: Bradford, John Title: Maritime Security in Southeast Asia: U.S., Japanese, Regional, and Industry Strategies Summary: Pirate activity in strategically important waterways around the globe, from the Strait of Malacca to the waters off the Horn of Africa, has garnered significant attention recently from states dependent on these waters for international trade and the free movement of goods. State responses have ranged from independently dispatching naval forces to patrol major sea lines of communication, to multinational patrols and information sharing mechanisms to increase domain awareness. Less visible, but of equal-or perhaps greater-importance are the efforts of ship owners, operators, and maritime industry groups toward increasing ship security and combating pirate attacks. Originally presented at a workshop NBR collaborated on with the Japan Forum on International Relations in Tokyo, Japan, in May 2010, this special report focuses on U.S., Japanese, regional, and industry strategies to combat piracy and other maritime security threats in Southeast Asian waterways. Details: Seattle, WA: National Bureau of Asian Research, 2010. 56p. Source: Internet Resource: NBR Special Report #24: Accessed December 16, 2010 at: http://www.nbr.org/publications/specialreport/pdf/SR24_MaritimeSecurity.pdf Year: 2010 Country: Asia URL: http://www.nbr.org/publications/specialreport/pdf/SR24_MaritimeSecurity.pdf Shelf Number: 120532 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPiratesPirates/Piracy |
Author: Bellamy, Liam Title: What Can Be Done To Counter Somali Piracy? Summary: This paper examines the tactical options available to ships that are under threat from piracy off the Somali coast. It argues that we may be witnessing the first asymmetric naval campaign and that vessels should adopt protective tactics to match this reality and the changing tactics of the pirates themselves. Details: Athens, Greece: Research Institute for European and American Studies (RIEAS), 2009. 16p. Source: Internet Resource: Research Paper No. 129: Accessed December 17, 2010 at: http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Digital-Library/Publications/Detail/?ots591=0c54e3b3-1e9c-be1e-2c24-a6a8c7060233&lng=en&id=97573 Year: 2009 Country: Somalia URL: http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Digital-Library/Publications/Detail/?ots591=0c54e3b3-1e9c-be1e-2c24-a6a8c7060233&lng=en&id=97573 Shelf Number: 120539 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Moller, Bjorn Title: Piracy, Maritime Terrorism and Naval Strategy Summary: Piracy is an old problem which is now again attracting attention, mainly because of the surge of pirate attacks off the coasts of Somalia. Closer analysis shows the problem to be of quite modest proportions. The international naval protection of merchant shipping holds out some prospects of containing the problem, but it is most likely to solve itself. If international shipping opts for the route south of Africa, piracy will die out for a lack of targets. Maritime terrorism is, likewise, a problem of very limited proportions. It is often conflated with piracy, but there are significant differences between the two phenomena, the latter being undertaken for selfish reasons, the former for the sake of some higher cause. Whereas it is conceivable that maritime terrorists will gradually transform themselves into pirates, a transformation in the opposite direction is well nigh inconceivable. Besides the analysis of these two phenomena, the overlap between them and certain naval strategies are also briefly touched upon. Details: Copenhagen: Danish Institute for International Studies, DIIS, 2009. 36p. Source: Internet Resource: DIIS Report 2009:02: Accessed December 21, 2010 at: http://www.diis.dk/graphics/Publications/Reports2009/DIIS_Report_2009-02_%20Piracy_maritime_terrorism_and_naval_strategy.pdf Year: 2009 Country: International URL: http://www.diis.dk/graphics/Publications/Reports2009/DIIS_Report_2009-02_%20Piracy_maritime_terrorism_and_naval_strategy.pdf Shelf Number: 120561 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/PiracyTerrorism |
Author: Marts, Charles Title: Piracy Ransoms -- Conflicting Perspectives Summary: This paper presents both sides of the debate over whether States should allow payment of ransoms to pirates. United States Executive Order 13536 and other recent national and international legislation have brought increased awareness to this issue. This paper does not attempt to settle the ransom debate, but instead highlights the key issues, which perhaps will inspire progress in the fight to curb piracy. In their simplest distillations the positions are the pro-ransom stance advocating use of all means available to limit immediate threats of violence and disaster; versus the anti-ransom stance advocating use of all means available to limit acts of piracy over a longer term. Maritime industry practitioners assert that paying ransoms are the only tool available once a ship has been hijacked. Paying ransoms, they claim, minimizes risks of escalated violence, revenue liability, and environmental disaster. Those individuals/States opposed to paying ransoms believe that each ransom payment fuels and perpetuates the menace of piracy and that the eventual outcome of this escalation would likely be military intervention. In the final section of this paper, we briefly examine recent legislation and a small sample of international views that illustrate the practical complexity of ransom policies. A reader unfamiliar with the laws and opinions concerning this issue may find it useful to read this section before jumping into the arguments. Details: Louisville, CO: One Earth Future Foundation, 2010. 35p. Source: Internet Resource: Working Paper: Accessed February 2, 2011 at: http://oneearthfuture.org/images/imagefiles/Ransom-%20Charlie%20Marts.pdf Year: 2010 Country: International URL: http://oneearthfuture.org/images/imagefiles/Ransom-%20Charlie%20Marts.pdf Shelf Number: 120657 Keywords: Hijacking of ShipsMaritime CrimePirates/PiracyRansoms |
Author: Dutton, Yvonne M. Title: Bringing Pirates to Justice: A Case for Including Piracy Within the Jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court Summary: The large and growing impunity gap for piracy can only be closed if the international community decides to act to bring pirates to justice. Piracy is a serious crime of international concern that is increasing in frequency and severity despite the unique ways in which the international community has been working together recently in an effort to repress and combat piracy. This Article suggests that pirates should be brought to justice using the extant International Criminal Court (ICC) by way of an optional protocol to include piracy within the ICC’s jurisdiction. Modern piracy is directed against victims from around the world, creates harms that are felt by the entire international community, and involves many of the same violent and cruel acts, such as murder, kidnapping, and hostage-taking, that are used to commit the crimes already within the ICC’s jurisdiction. Also, like the other crimes included within the court’s jurisdiction, piracy is a crime well-suited to the complementarity regime designed to help end impunity for serious crimes of concern to the international community. Nations are not prosecuting piracy suspects with any regularity, either because they do not have the laws, capacity, or resources to handle such prosecutions, or because they alone do not want to bear the various burdens associated with an expensive and difficult prosecution that affects numerous nations. The ICC could help end this culture of impunity regarding piracy offenses, and the burden of supporting the court’s adjudication of piracy cases could be shared by the international community more generally. Details: Louisville, CO: One Earth Future Foundation, 2010. 34p. Source: Internet Resource: Discussion Paper: Accessed February 2, 2011 at: http://www.oneearthfuture.org/siteadmin/images/files/file_52.pdf Year: 2010 Country: International URL: http://www.oneearthfuture.org/siteadmin/images/files/file_52.pdf Shelf Number: 120658 Keywords: International Criminal CourtPirates/Piracy |
Author: Andersen, Elizabeth Title: Suppressing Maritime Piracy: Exploring the Options in International Law Summary: Suppressing Maritime Piracy: Exploring the Options in International Law captures the discussions and recommendations of a distinguished group of international law and governance professors, legal experts, and judges who met in Washington D.C. for a workshop convened through the efforts of One Earth Future Foundati on, the Academic Council on the United Nations System, and the American Society of International Law. The workshop examined the legal framework currently employed to suppress piracy and explored potential alternatives or augmentations to the existing structures. More than anything else, the workshop revealed the immense complexity surrounding piracy. Two important aspects of the problem that emerged during the workshop are worth highlighting here: First, although there is a general tendency today to associate piracy with the failed state of Somalia, only about 40% of piracy events actually occur around the Horn of Africa. Maritime piracy is a persistent global criminal activity, and solving the Somali problem does not solve piracy in the rest of the world. It is important to keep in mind, while considering the findings of this workshop, that the legal framework applies globally. Second, piracy is a distinct crime in itself, but it often involves a complex nexus of other crimes, which are subject to different jurisdictional and legal rules than piracy. Pirate groups often commit, for example, assault, theft , kidnapping, torture, extortion, money laundering, and arms dealing — some of which may under certain circumstances constitute piracy while others may not. The legal responses to piracy should take into consideration this complexity. The report indicates that while the legal framework for dealing with piracy is well established, there are practical difficulties in implementation and outstanding questions that require further research. Our organizations welcome the opportunity to engage with others to develop appropriate avenues for this research. Details: Louisville, CO: One Earth Future, 2010. 45p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 2, 2011 at: http://www.maritimeterrorism.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Piracy-OneEarthFuture.pdf Year: 2010 Country: International URL: http://www.maritimeterrorism.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Piracy-OneEarthFuture.pdf Shelf Number: 120659 Keywords: Maritime CrimePirates/Piracy |
Author: Carafano, James Jay Title: Taking the Fight to the Pirates: Applying Counterterrorist Methods to the Threat of Priacy Summary: Piracy is a growing threat to global commerce and is becoming a U.S. security issue. While anti-piracy efforts have successfully reduced piracy in the Malacca Strait, Somali pirates have expanded their operations further into the Indian Ocean. Ending the threat from Somali pirates will require shifting from a defensive posture of trying to protect ships passing through the high-risk zones—there are too many ships, too few military vessels, and too many pirates—to an offensive strategy of attacking the pirates at their weak points. The United States and other countries should use every means at their disposal to deny the pirates any safe haven—geographical, financial, or legal—and bring them to justice wherever it is most convenient. Details: Washington, DC: The Heritage Foundation, 2011. 11p. Source: Internet Resource: Backgrounder No. 2524: Accessed March 14, 2011 at: http://thf_media.s3.amazonaws.com/2011/pdf/bg2524.pdf Year: 2011 Country: International URL: http://thf_media.s3.amazonaws.com/2011/pdf/bg2524.pdf Shelf Number: 120929 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Caldwell, Stephen L. Title: Maritime Security: Updating U.S. Counterpiracy Action Plan Gains Urgency as Piracy Escalates off the Horn of Africa Summary: As GAO reported in September 2010, the U.S. government has made progress in implementing its plan for countering piracy, in collaboration with industry and international partners. However, piracy is an escalating problem, and the U.S. government has not updated its plan as GAO recommended. The United States has advised industry partners on self-protection measures, contributed leadership and assets to an international coalition patrolling pirate-infested waters, and concluded a prosecution arrangement with the Seychelles. Many stakeholders credit collaborative efforts with reducing the pirates' rate of success in boarding ships and hijacking vessels, but since 2007 the location of attacks has spread from the heavily patrolled Gulf of Aden--the focus of the Action Plan--to the vast and much harder to patrol Indian Ocean. Also, from 2007 to 2010 the total number of reported hijackings increased sevenfold, and, after dropping in 2008 and 2009, the pirates' success rate rebounded from 22 percent in 2009 to almost 30 percent in 2010. In addition, the number of hostages captured and the amount of ransom paid increased sharply, and pirate attacks have grown more violent. The Action Plan's objective is to repress piracy off the Horn of Africa as effectively as possible, but as pirate operations have evolved, changes to the plan have not kept pace. The United States has not systematically tracked the costs of its counterpiracy efforts and is unable to determine whether counterpiracy investments are achieving the desired results. According to a statement by an NSS official, the United States is reviewing U.S. piracy policy to focus future U.S. efforts. These recent steps are encouraging because the growing frequency and severity of piracy off the Horn of Africa provides a renewed sense of urgency for taking action. GAO's September 2010 report found that U.S. agencies have generally collaborated well with international and industry partners to counter piracy, but they could take additional steps to enhance and sustain interagency collaboration. According to U.S. and international stakeholders, the U.S. government has, among other things, collaborated with international partners to support prosecution of piracy suspects and worked with industry partners to educate ship owners on how to protect their vessels from pirate attack. However, agencies have made less progress on several key efforts that involve multiple U.S. agencies--such as those to address piracy through strategic communications, disrupt pirate finances, and hold pirates accountable. For instance, the departments of Defense, Justice, State, and the Treasury all collect or examine information on pirate finances, but none has lead responsibility for analyzing that information to build a case against pirate leaders or financiers. In September 2010, GAO recommended that the NSC identify roles and responsibilities for implementing these tasks, and develop guidance to ensure agency efforts work together efficiently and effectively. In March 2011, an NSS official stated that an interagency policy review will examine roles and responsibilities and implementation actions to focus U.S. efforts for the next several years. It is too early to assess this effort's effectiveness in bolstering interagency collaboration in U.S. counterpiracy efforts. GAO is not making new recommendations in this statement. GAO previously recommended that the NSC (1) update its Action Plan; (2) assess the costs and effectiveness of U.S. counterpiracy activities; and (3) clarify agency roles and responsibilities. A National Security Staff (NSS) official provided a statement that an interagency group is reviewing U.S. piracy policy, costs, metrics, roles, and responsibilities. Agencies also commented to clarify information in this statement Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Government Accountability Office, 2011. 21p. Source: Internet Resource: GAO-11-449T: Accessed March 16, 2011 at: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d11449t.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Africa URL: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d11449t.pdf Shelf Number: 121026 Keywords: Hijackings of ShipsHostagesMaritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Mair, Stefan, ed. Title: Piracy and Maritime Security: Regional Characteristics and Political, Military, Legal and Economic Implications Summary: Maritime security has deteriorated over the past 15 years, with a sharp increase in pirate attacks on vessels and installations. The worst affected region is no longer Southeast Asia (in particular the Straits of Malacca) but the Gulf of Aden and the Somali Basin. Although the issue attracts enormous public attention in Europe, the direct economic costs are actually relatively limited. Piracy and maritime insecurity become a matter for action by the international community principally when the direct economic impact becomes conflated with a complex situation of regional insecurity. In that case military action is central to containing the problem. But a purely military operation cannot eliminate the causes of piracy in the Gulf of Aden, in the Somali Basin or anywhere else. As the example of the Straits of Malacca demonstrates, multilateral international efforts to resolve political conflicts and establish effective statehood are crucial. Details: Berlin:Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (German Institute for International and Security Affairs), 2011. 94p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 11, 2011 at: http://www.swp-berlin.org/fileadmin/contents/products/research_papers/2011_RP03_mrs_ks.pdf Year: 2011 Country: International URL: http://www.swp-berlin.org/fileadmin/contents/products/research_papers/2011_RP03_mrs_ks.pdf Shelf Number: 121306 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Brannon, Stephen Title: Global Challenge, Regional Responses: Forging a Common Approach to Maritime Piracy Summary: Once thought to be the scourge of a bygone age, maritime piracy has re-emerged in recent years as a serious threat to both crews and property on the high seas. Globally, attacks have risen from 239 in 2006 to 445 in 2010, with 1181 seafarers taken hostage taken last year alone. The total annual economic cost is estimated at $7-12 billion. Despite growing awareness of the threat, and a variety of national, regional and international initiatives, the tide of piracy continues to rise. It is in this context that the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and DP World convened the conference entitled “Global Challenge, Regional Responses: Forging a Common Approach to Maritime Piracy,” held in Dubai on April 18-19, 2011. The gathering brought leaders from government, the shipping industry and non-governmental organizations together with renowned experts in the field of counter-piracy to discuss ways in which the international response to the global challenge of maritime piracy might be supported and enhanced, and to identify specific, tangible opportunities for collaborative action. In order to stimulate innovative thinking on the subject, the conference organizers engaged the Dubai School of Government to commission a series of short briefing papers reflecting the cutting edge of academic and expert thought on piracy and related issues. These papers correspond to the four conference content categories: General Background and Regional Overviews; Addressing Root Causes; Opportunities for Information Sharing and Civil-Military Cooperation; and, Relevant Issues in International Law. The selected papers cover a wide range of topics and broach a number of key themes, ranging from the hidden economy of piracy to the plight of captive seafarers. Collectively, however, the papers share a common perspective: In spite of substantial investments in a number of areas, the current international response falls short of what is required to end this phenomenon. Furthermore, an effective and enduring solution to the global challenge of maritime piracy must entail a long-term, comprehensive effort, both onshore and offshore, which involves all relevant public and private sector stakeholders. Details: Dubai: Dubai School of Government, 2011. 124p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 20, 2011 at: http://www.dsg.ae/PUBLICATIONS/PublicationDetail.aspx?udt_826_param_detail=3099 Year: 2011 Country: International URL: http://www.dsg.ae/PUBLICATIONS/PublicationDetail.aspx?udt_826_param_detail=3099 Shelf Number: 121456 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Groot, Olaf J. de Title: Gov-arrrgh-nance: Jolly Rogers and Dodgy Rulers Summary: In this paper, we argue that the effect of governance on the emergence of crimes of different levels of sophistication is highly non-linear. State failure, anarchy and a lack of infrastructure are not conducive to establishing any business, including illicit enterprises. At the bottom of the spectrum, therefore, both legal business and criminal gangs benefit from improved governance. With further improvements in governance criminal activities decline. We find strong and consistent support for this hypothesis using the International Maritime Bureau's dataset on piracy. Piracy is reported by ship-owners, giving a unique insight into crime in badly governed countries which were systematically excluded from previous analyses. We show that profitable forms of piracy flourish where on the one hand there is stability and infrastructure, but on the other hand the state does not have the capacity to intervene and/or bureaucrats can be bribed to turn a blind eye. For minor acts of theft from ships the pattern is quadratic: piracy first rises and then falls as governance improves. Details: Berlin: DIW Berlin German Institute for Economic Research, 2010. 45p. Source: Internet Resource: DIW Berlin Discussion Papers 1063: Accessed May 5, 2011 at: http://www.diw.de/documents/publikationen/73/diw_01.c.361831.de/dp1063.pdf Year: 2010 Country: International URL: http://www.diw.de/documents/publikationen/73/diw_01.c.361831.de/dp1063.pdf Shelf Number: 121650 Keywords: Illegal BehaviorMaritime CrimePirates/Piracy |
Author: de Coning, Eve Title: Transnational Organized Crime in the Fishing Industry. Focus on: Trafficking in Persons; Smuggling of Migrants; Illicit Drugs Trafficking Summary: The study posed the questions whether there is transnational organized crime and other criminal activity in the fishing industry and, if so, what the vulnerabilities of the fishing industry are to transnational organized crime or other criminal activity. The research took the form of a six-month desk review of available literature, supplemented by ad hoc consultations and a two-day expert consultation held in Vienna, Austria. Importantly the study did not set out to tarnish the fishing industry. Rather, the study sought to determine whether criminal activities take place within the fishing industry to the detriment of law-abiding fishers, the legitimate fishing industry, local fishing communities and the general public alike. The study considered the involvement of the fishing industry or the use of fishing vessels in trafficking in persons (Chapter 2); smuggling of migrants (Chapter 3); illicit traffic in drugs (Chapter 4); and other forms of crime such as marine living resource crime, corruption, and piracy and other security related crimes (Chapter 5). Details: Vienna: United Nations, 2011. 146p. Source: Internet Resource: accessed May 9, 2011 at: http://www.unodc.org/documents/human-trafficking/Issue_Paper_-_TOC_in_the_Fishing_Industry.pdf Year: 2011 Country: International URL: http://www.unodc.org/documents/human-trafficking/Issue_Paper_-_TOC_in_the_Fishing_Industry.pdf Shelf Number: 121659 Keywords: Child TraffickingDrug TraffickingForced LaborHuman TraffickingIllegal FishingIllegal MigrantsMaritime CrimeOffenses Against the EnvironmentOrganized CrimePirates/Piracy |
Author: Kraska, James Title: The Report on the U.S. Naval War College Workshop on Somali Piracy: Fresh Thinking for an Old Threat Summary: On April 7 and 8, the International Law Department of the Center for Naval Warfare Studies at the U.S. Naval War College conducted a Counter-piracy Workshop comprised of 50 legal and policy experts from across the globe. The Workshop was designed to take a fresh look at the threat of maritime piracy off the Horn of Africa, assess the tremendous progress in international law and diplomacy that has transpired to address the problem, and to take a measure of the way forward. By collecting many of the world’s top experts to consider the threat of maritime piracy, and by providing a forum to discuss the issue in a frank and open dialogue, the Workshop revisited some conventional thinking and explored new approaches. The participants brought significant diversity and depth of expertise. Many are involved in day-to-day decision-making on counter-piracy operations, policy and international law in Europe, Asia and the United States. Details: Newport, RI: United States Naval War College, 2009. 20p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 23, 2011 at: http://www.usnwc.edu/getattachment/521cc632-2c29-4190-97d0-2d3a9dacd2c6/Countering-Maritime-Piracy Year: 2009 Country: Somalia URL: http://www.usnwc.edu/getattachment/521cc632-2c29-4190-97d0-2d3a9dacd2c6/Countering-Maritime-Piracy Shelf Number: 121779 Keywords: Maritime CrimePirates/Piracy |
Author: Ploch, Lauren Title: Piracy Off the Horn of Africa Summary: Pirate attacks in the waters off Somalia and the Horn of Africa, including those on U.S.-flagged vessels, have brought renewed international attention to the long-standing problem of maritime piracy. According to the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), at least 219 attacks occurred in the region in 2010, with 49 successful hijackings. Somali pirates have attacked ships in the Gulf of Aden, along Somalia’s eastern coastline, and outward into the Indian Ocean. Using increasingly sophisticated tactics, these pirates now operate as far east as the Maldives in good weather, and as far south as the Mozambique Channel. Hostage taking for ransom has been a hallmark of Somali piracy, and the IMB reports that more hostages, over 1,180, were taken at sea in 2010 than any year since records began; over 86% of those were taken by Somali pirates. The increase in pirate attacks off the Horn of Africa is directly linked to continuing insecurity and the absence of the rule of law in war-torn Somalia. The absence of a functioning central government there provides freedom of action for pirates and remains the single greatest challenge to regional security. The lack of law enforcement capacity creates a haven where pirates hold hostages during ransom negotiations that can last for months. Some allege that the absence of Somali coastal security authorities has allowed illegal international fishing and maritime dumping to go unchecked, which in turn has undermined coastal communities’ economic prospects, providing economic or political motivation to some pirates. The apparent motive of most pirate groups, however, is profit, and piracy has proven to be lucrative. Somalia’s “pirate economy” has grown substantially in the past two years, with ransoms now averaging more than $5 million. These revenues may further exacerbate the ongoing conflict and undermine regional security. The annual cost of piracy to the global economy ranges between $7 and $12 billion, by some estimates. The U.N Security Council has issued a series of resolutions since 2008 to facilitate an international response, which is coordinated by a multilateral Contact Group. The Council has authorized international navies to counter piracy both in Somali territorial waters and ashore, with the consent of Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government (TFG), and has also authorized, as an exemption to the U.N. arms embargo on Somalia, support for the TFG security forces. Counter-piracy patrols by multinational naval forces near Somalia are intended to compliment mariners’ self-protection measures. Increased patrols and proactive efforts by ships have reduced attacks in the Gulf of Aden, but the U.N. Secretary-General warns that “while the effectiveness of naval disruption operations has increased and more pirates have been arrested and prosecuted, this has not stopped piracy. The trend of the increased levels of violence employed by the pirates as well as their expanding reach is disconcerting.” Some suggest that a perception of impunity exists among pirates and financiers; nine out of ten Somali pirates apprehended by naval patrols are reportedly released because no jurisdiction is prepared to prosecute them. The United States has sought to prevent, disrupt, and prosecute Somali piracy through a range of interagency and multilateral coordination and enforcement mechanisms. The Obama Administration has initiated a new “dual track” policy toward Somalia, where some contend that international efforts to build a credible central authority have failed. Congress has examined options to address piracy both diplomatically and militarily. Congress appropriates funding and provides oversight for policy initiatives with implications for piracy in the region, including maritime security assistance to regional governments, support to peacekeeping operations in Somalia, and funding for U.S. Navy operations. Congress continues to debate options for addressing pirate safe havens and improving the prospects for prosecution of pirate suspects. Details: Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 2011. 47p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 24, 2011 at: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/R40528.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Africa URL: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/R40528.pdf Shelf Number: 121821 Keywords: Hijacking of ShipsMaritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/PiracyRansom |
Author: Medcalf, Rory Title: Crisis and Confidence: Major Powers and Maritime Security in Indo-Pacific Asia Summary: The sea lanes of Indo-Pacific Asia are becoming more crowded, contested and vulnerable to armed strife. The changing deterrence and warfighting strategies of China, the United States and Japan involve expanded maritime patrolling and intrusive surveillance, bringing an uncertain mix of stabilising and destabilising effects. Nationalism and resource needs, meanwhile, are reinforcing the value of territorial claims in the East and South China seas, making maritime sovereignty disputes harder to manage. Chinese forces continue to show troubling signs of assertiveness at sea, though there is debate about the origins or extent of such moves. All of these factors are making Asia a danger zone for incidents at sea. While the chance that such incidents will lead to major military clashes should not be overstated, the drivers – in particular China’s frictions with the United States, Japan and India – are likely to persist and intensify. As the number and tempo of incidents increases, so does the likelihood that an episode will escalate to armed confrontation, diplomatic crisis or possibly even conflict. This report, part of the Lowy Institute’s MacArthur Foundation Asia Security Project, explores the major-power maritime security dynamics surrounding China’s rise. It focuses on the risks and the management of incidents at sea involving Chinese interactions with the United States, Japan and India. The report concludes with some realistic recommendations to reduce risks of crisis and escalation under conditions of continued mistrust. Details: Sydney: Lowry Institute for International Policy, 2011. 71p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 30, 2011 at: http://www.lowyinstitute.org/Publication.asp?pid=1618 Year: 2011 Country: Asia URL: http://www.lowyinstitute.org/Publication.asp?pid=1618 Shelf Number: 121924 Keywords: Maritime Crime (Asia)Maritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Geopolicity Title: The Economics of Piracy: Pirate Ransoms and Livelihoods Off the Coast of Somalia Summary: In 2011, Geopolicity established a global economic model for assessing the costs and benefits of international piracy; adding significantly to the debate on the causes and consequences of piracy. This model provides a comprehensive, independent framework of trend analysis, whilst also highlighting across the ‘Pirate Value Chain’ (PVC) where the greatest rates of return on international counter pirate investment and policy are to be found. The model includes (i) cost-benefit analysis at the individual pirate level, based on existing socioeconomic and market data (ii) the aggregate costs and benefits at the international systems level and (iii) comprehensive data on the resurgence of piracy by functional classification and sovereign jurisdiction; to include trend, comparator and predictive analysis. Further research, based on aggregating all existing secondary data into a common analytical and diagnostic platform, as well as on the ground research in coastal communities is urgently needed, and would provide, for the first time, a strong understanding of the economics of piracy. Details: Road Town, British Virgin Islands: Geopolicity, 2011. 27p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 7, 2011 at: http://www.geopolicity.com/upload/content/pub_1305229189_regular.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Somalia URL: http://www.geopolicity.com/upload/content/pub_1305229189_regular.pdf Shelf Number: 121994 Keywords: Cost-Benefit AnalysisEconomics of CrimePirates/PiracyRansoms |
Author: D'Agostino, Davi M. Title: Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance: DOD Needs a Strategic, Risk-Based Approach to Enhance Its Maritime Domain Awareness Summary: Maritime security threats to the United States are broad, including the naval forces of potential adversary nations, terrorism, and piracy. The attacks on the USS Cole in 2000, in Mumbai in 2008, and on the Maersk Alabama in 2009 highlight these very real threats. The Department of Defense (DOD) considers maritime domain awareness — that is, identifying threats and providing commanders with sufficient awareness to make timely decisions — a means for facilitating effective action in the maritime domain and critical to its homeland defense mission. GAO was asked to examine the extent to which DOD has developed a strategy to manage its maritime domain awareness efforts and uses a risk-based approach. GAO analyzed national and DOD documents; interviewed DOD and interagency maritime domain awareness officials; and conducted site visits to select facilities engaged in maritime related activities. This report is a public version of a previous, sensitive report. GAO recommends that DOD (1) develop and implement a strategy with objectives, roles, and responsibilities for maritime domain awareness, aligns with DOD’s corporate process, identifies capability resourcing responsibilities, and includes performance measures; and (2) perform a comprehensive risk-based analysis, including prioritized capability gaps and future investments. Details: Washington, DC: GAO, 2011. 33p. Source: Internet Resource: GAO-11-621: Accessed July 7, 2011 at: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d11621.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d11621.pdf Shelf Number: 122007 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/PiracyTerrorism |
Author: Birch, Paul R. Title: Old Glory and the Jolly Roger: The Cultural Constraints and Strategic Imperatives of Modern Piracy Summary: This thesis discusses piracy on the open seas. It describes acts of piracy, puts the practice into historical perspective, and shows how a recent surge in maritime piracy incidents differs from other maritime piracy afflicting the world’s oceans at the turn of the twentyfirst century. This is half of the reason for writing. The second purpose for is to examine the US military response to the dramatic increase in piracy near Somalia that occurred in 2008. The thesis examines the US response through the theoretical lenses of strategic culture and structural realism. These theories seldom appear alongside each other in security studies literature; their juxtaposition explains the US behavior toward the contemporary African piracy epidemic and provides a framework for examining other national security issues. This thesis concludes that although certain national security elites push US strategic culture toward interventionist or isolationist extremes, some world events elicit foregone responses best described by the ideas of structural realism. Tacit realization by national security actors that these events exist in spite of what elite groups profess or desire in turn defines strategic culture in a fundamentally different way. Given its place in the existing world order, the United States had little choice but to respond to piracy, even though its strategic preference was to ignore the problem. The valuable lesson from piracy represents in microcosm many problems of national strategy. If US cultural preference is again at odds with a strategic imperative to use force, and elites indulge the former, the nation may forfeit its structural role as the world’s existing hegemon. This is historically significant, as ceding the role of hegemon at this time would be a voluntary act, not forced by a stronger nation or an altered balance of power. The United States would become the first superpower to lay down that mantle voluntarily. Although US foreign policy appears now to have reconciled strategic cultural preferences with structural imperatives in the case of piracy, strategists must recognize the potential for the same kind of tension in all international relations problems. If the tension between preference and imperatives goes unresolved, the outcome can diminish national power. The United States should not proceed down that path unawares. Details: Maxwell AFB, AL: School Of Advanced Air And Space Studies Air University Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama, 2009. 112p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed August 10, 2011 at: http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf&AD=ADA540653 Year: 2009 Country: International URL: http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf&AD=ADA540653 Shelf Number: 122365 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Mansfield, Charles T. Title: Modern Piracy: The Impact on Maritime Security Summary: Although acts of piracy are generally criminal as opposed to terrorist in nature, their unpredictable time and location of occurrence, the wide variety of vessels targeted, and their increasing frequency creates an opportunity for terrorists to use pirates' methods as a means to achieve their goals. This paper will provide a brief historical perspective on piracy, examine its modern dimensions, and analyze the impact of modern piracy on U.S. maritime security. The thesis examines the efforts that U.S. and foreign governments, military, business, and civilian organizations expend to combat the problem, and piracy's tangible costs in capital resources to combat. The sea, a largely unregulated space, is a safe haven for criminals and terrorists to act unopposed by military or law enforcement efforts. Although piracy is generally not politically motivated, it is invariably linked to prevailing political conditions and the proximity of weak or failed states. Since the terrorist attacks in the United States in 2001, the international community has been forced to assess the vulnerabilities of maritime security. In the post- 9/11 and USS Cole era, there has been a resurgence in worldwide piracy incidents. The increase in attacks has demanded the serious attention of global maritime trading partners. The possible use of a maritime vessel as a weapon is a real and credible threat. The United States and her maritime partners are constantly working to achieve a secure global maritime environment. The focus is on assisting failed and failing states to create functional governments that will develop their law enforcement and coast guard capabilities. Until these weak and lawless lands can maintain control of their territorial waters, the global maritime partners will be required to use their naval and law enforcement assets to patrol piracy hot spots to prevent a further escalation of robberies, violence, and potentially terrorist acts. Details: Quantico, VA: United States Marine Corps, Command and State College, 2008. 29p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 22, 2011 at: http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA490682&Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf Year: 2008 Country: International URL: http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA490682&Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf Shelf Number: 122431 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/PiracyTerrorism |
Author: Osiro, Deborah Title: Somali Pirates Have Rights Too: Judicial Consequences and Human Rights Concerns Summary: The international community’s counter-piracy operation off the coast of Somalia has had limited success, despite a proliferation of initiatives and resources. Although the large military presence has increased the number of piracy suspects that are being brought to trial, it has not reduced the number of pirates taking to the high seas. Rather, the increased militarisation and the strategies designed to bypass human rights obligations vis-à-vis the Somali pirates has undermined the credibility of the counter-piracy initiatives. The regional piracy prosecutions in Kenya, in particular, have raised various human rights issues, such as the failure to observe due process and the lack of appropriate jurisdiction. This paper highlights the fact that the strategy of enforcing legal accountability for pirates at sea but not for those on shore breeds a disregard for the human rights of a very vulnerable group of people, and results in an increase in piratical activities Details: Pretoria, South Africa: Institute for Security Studies, 2011. 28p. Source: Internet Resource: ISS Paper 224: Accessed August 23, 2011 at: http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Full_Report_1860.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Africa URL: http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Full_Report_1860.pdf Shelf Number: 122470 Keywords: Human RightsMaritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Whiteneck, Daniel Title: The Navy at a Tipping Point: Maritime Dominance at Stake? Summary: For the past 60 years, since roughly the outbreak of the Korean War and the U.S. response to that war, the Navy has had a consistent strategy for the structure, deployment, and posturing of the fleet. American maritime dominance has been based on forces that were deployed forward and always ready to respond quickly to emerging situations in areas of vital interest to American foreign policy. Because of the perceived need to be able to respond at the highest levels of warfare throughout the Cold War, those forces were built, trained, and equipped to be “combat credible” against capable challengers. “Combat credible” meant the ability to project power against advanced air defenses, conduct and enable littoral/amphibious operations in opposed environments, and establish blue-water dominance against highly capable surface, sub-surface, and air threats. In the post-Cold War environment, and since 9/11, evidence illustrates that the demand signal for naval forces has not waned. In fact, the Navy continues to be tasked with a range of operations, from disaster response to peacetime engagement and shows of force, and from counter-piracy and maritime interdiction to participation in major combat operations by TACAIR and other power-projection forces. This demand signal did not go down during the 1990s (“reaping the peace dividend”) as the Navy took on persistent operations in the Balkans, the Caribbean, and the Arabian Gulf after Desert Storm, continued its role in Asia, and expanded its peacetime engagement as COCOMs increased “shaping” activities. After 9/11, the Navy shed its role in the Balkans and the Caribbean but increased its homeland defense role and its ballistic missile defense missions, and it has played a major part in strike operations for OIF and OEF for the past decade. The Navy also picked up significant roles in humanitarian assistance, maritime partnership building, littoral combat, and special operational forces (SOF), and routinely had over 10,000 sailors ashore in CENTCOM to support operations there. If the Navy hoped that reductions in the demand signal would give it breathing room to reset the force and invest in platforms and assets at the expense of operations, its hopes have proved to be false. The Navy battle force has shrunk by 20 percent in the last decade, while the number of ships on deployment has remained relatively steady. In a period of constant demand, resources to meet those demands, pay for needed future structure, and meet growing demands for spending on people and health care have shrunk. They will not grow in the future. There is a gap that must be addressed. Details: Alexandria, VA: CNA Analysis & Solutions, 2010. 50p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 29, 2011 at: http://www.cna.org/sites/default/files/research/The%20Navy%20at%20a%20Tipping%20Point%20D0022262.A3.pdf Year: 2010 Country: United States URL: http://www.cna.org/sites/default/files/research/The%20Navy%20at%20a%20Tipping%20Point%20D0022262.A3.pdf Shelf Number: 122787 Keywords: Homeland SecurityMaritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/PiracyU.S. Navy |
Author: Onuoha, Freedom C. Title: Piracy and Maritime Security in the Gulf of Guinea: Nigeria as Microcosm Summary: The resurgence of pirate attacks in African waters is now a subject of serious concern to African states and indeed the international community. For the last decade, piracy in African waters is concentrated in three main regions, namely the Somali coast/the Gulf of Aden along the East African Coast; Nigeria’s territorial waters in West Africa; and the Mozambique Channel/Cape sea route in Southern Africa. Since 2007 when African waters overtook waters off Southeast Asia – Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Philippines – as the traditionally dangerous hotspots of global piracy, much of the international attention and efforts at countering piracy in Africa have been on Somali maritime piracy. This is understandably so, because piracy off the Somali coast accounts for more than half of pirate attacks recorded annually in Africa, if not globally. For instance, there were 439 piracy attacks worldwide in 2011, more than half of which were attributed to Somali pirates operating in the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean, and off the coast of Oman (Alessi, 2012). The spike in attacks prompted the deployment in 2008 of an ongoing international coalition of navies to fight Somali piracy. Yet violence at sea is also brewing in another African gulf: the Gulf of Guinea (GG). The increase in the number of attacks in 2011 in the GG and the fear that this would further increase in 2012 have prompted analysts to question whether foreign 3 navies will intervene to shore up maritime security in the region as they did in waters off the coast of Somalia (Baldauf, 2012). It is in this light that this article examines the dynamics of piracy in the GG region by highlighting, the trend in piracy in the region, contributing factors underlying the scourge, implications of piracy for the region and efforts being made to suppress violence at sea in the region. Details: Doha, Qatar: Al Jazeera Centre for Studies, 2012. 12p Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 1, 2012 at http://studies.aljazeera.net/ResourceGallery/media/Documents/2012/6/12/201261294647291734Piracy%20and%20Maritime%20Security%20in%20the%20Gulf%20of%20Guinea.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Nigeria URL: http://studies.aljazeera.net/ResourceGallery/media/Documents/2012/6/12/201261294647291734Piracy%20and%20Maritime%20Security%20in%20the%20Gulf%20of%20Guinea.pdf Shelf Number: 126543 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPiracyPirates/Piracy |
Author: Hurlburt, Kaija Title: The Human Cost of Somali Piracy 2011 Summary: The latest version of the joint study by Oceans Beyond Piracy and the International Maritime Bureau was launched at the International Maritime Organization’s headquarters in London on June 22, 2012 and details the plight of seafarers at the hands of Somali pirates. The report is a combination of information provided by the signatory states to the Declaration Condemning Acts of Violence Against Seafarers, the Maritime Piracy Humanitarian Response Programme (MPHRP), and data compiled by OBP. • 3,863 seafarers were fired upon by Somali pirates with assault rifles and rocket propelled grenades • 968 seafarers came into close contact with pirates, who managed to board their vessels • 413 seafarers were rescued from citadels • 1,206 hostages were held captive by Somali pirates • 555 seafarers were taken hostage in 2011; 645 hostages were captured in 2010 and remained captive during 2011; 6 tourists and aid workers were kidnapped on land • 35 hostages died as a result of pirate captivity in 2011 • Average length of captivity was 8 months. Details: London: International Maritime Bureau; Broomfield, CO: Oceans Beyond Piracy, 2012. 30p. Source: Internet Resource: accessed February 26, 2013 at: http://oceansbeyondpiracy.org/sites/default/files/hcop_2011.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Somalia URL: http://oceansbeyondpiracy.org/sites/default/files/hcop_2011.pdf Shelf Number: 127720 Keywords: Maritime CrimesMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Thiele, Ralph D. Title: Building Maritime Security Situational Awareness Summary: Maritime domain security relies on the ability to build a comprehensive awareness of maritime activity. Although it is still in the developmental stages situational awareness is the prerequisite of maritime domain security. Today technological developments such as space‐based systems, over‐the‐horizon radar, and nearshore and harbour acoustics can be incorporated into a layered approach to increase security. To identify and address weaknesses in the system, industry and academia have been discussing ways in which technology, based on advanced modelling and simulation tools can be used to identify threats and determine potential impacts. Numerous governmental, military and business organizations already possess valuable inputs into shared situational awareness. However, no one source captures all of the maritime information needed or currently available. The information exchange between government agencies and with private industry, in particular, sharing common databases, is the real power behind maritime domain awareness centres. Details: Berlin: Institut für Strategie- Politik- Sicherheits- und Wirtschaftsberatung ISPSW, 2013. 10p. Source: Internet Resource: ISPSW Strategy Series: Focus on Defense and International Security Issue No. 182: Accessed May 13, 2013 at: http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Digital-Library/Publications/Detail/?id=140759 Year: 2013 Country: International URL: http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Digital-Library/Publications/Detail/?id=140759 Shelf Number: 128696 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Whitman, S. Title: Children and Youth in Marine Piracy: Causes, Consequences and the Way Forward Summary: According to the Failed States Index Data 2011, created by the Fund for Peace Organization, 6 countries most affected by piratical activity fall within the top 15 most fragile states. This includes Somalia, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Pakistan, Yemen and Nigeria. Piracy is not the main factor as to why these countries are fragile, at the same time, not all fragile littoral states have marine piracy. However, this does demonstrate the importance of looking at the broader social, political and economic environment that enables piracy. Understanding the human factors associated with piracy activity and the root causes is critical to the development of solutions to address piracy. The Dalhousie Marine Piracy Project (DMPP) has undertaken such an integrated and interdisciplinary approach to addressing the problem of contemporary piracy and its impact on the shipping and coastal communities. In so doing, it comprehensively examined the four interdependent themes of Law and Governance, Socio-Economic, Operational Responses, and Information Management; assessed current literature on the topic of contemporary marine piracy; and, through analysis of that work, highlighted potential areas for policy development and implementation. Piracy appears to develop where weak or non-existent government and enforcement capabilities, impoverished coastal communities, and shipping targets exist in relatively close proximity. Other elements such as organized criminality, youth unemployment, political conflict and even natural disasters may also contribute to the likelihood of piracy emerging as a major threat to shipping in a particular region. The DMPP has examined the economic, political and social conditions, which have led to contemporary outbreaks of piracy with the intention of identifying and evaluating the effectiveness of current and proposed responses to piracy. This paper highlights an important and growing issue identified from the DMPP research. Of deep concern is the increasing evidence that children and youth are being recruited by piracy gangs with little recognition among those responsible for addressing piracy and the complexities this introduces. For this particular problem, however, it is important to note that systematic collection of data on this matter does not currently exist and as such, it has been difficult to conduct a clear, evidenced-based assessment of the situation. As such, three key objectives of this paper are: (i) to raise the awareness of the failure to address the question of the involvement of children and youth by those involved in either studying or addressing piracy and (ii) to provide a rationale for the collection and accessibility of disaggregated data on those committing piracy by those who are capturing, releasing, reporting and prosecuting those involved in piracy activity and (iii) to provide possible alternatives to addressing marine piracy by focusing on the challenges posed by the involvement of children and youth. In addition, it should be noted that many who are involved in studying or addressing marine piracy have failed to pose questions regarding the involvement of children and youth. This means that a critical gap in the data collection, research, and responses to marine piracy have yet to be considered as a potential approach in the overall effort to halt or reduce marine piracy. Details: Halifax, Nova Scotia: Dalhousie Marine Piracy Project, 2012. 20p. Source: Internet Resource: Marine Affairs Program Technical Report #5: Accessed May 20, 2013 at: http://marineaffairsprogram.dal.ca/Files/Dalhousie-Marine-Affairs-Program-Technical-Report-%235-2012-12.pdf Year: 2012 Country: International URL: http://marineaffairsprogram.dal.ca/Files/Dalhousie-Marine-Affairs-Program-Technical-Report-%235-2012-12.pdf Shelf Number: 128759 Keywords: Child ProtectionMaritime CrimePirates/PiracyYouth Gangs |
Author: Sloan, M. Title: Dalhousie Marine Piracy Project: Operational Responses for the Discouragement and Suppression of Marine Piracy Summary: The overall goal of the Dalhousie Marine Piracy Project (DMPP) is set out in the capping paper to this Inter-Sectoral Working Group Draft of the operational responses module report. Scope -- Under the operational responses thematic area of the DMPP, the following sub-themes have been examined a. The discouragement of piracy: disincentive strategies designed to discourage or frustrate piracy activities. b. The suppression of piracy: Operational responses, naval patrols, integrated enforcement initiatives, surveillance and intelligence. 3. This report considers operational responses employed to counter recent and current outbreaks of piracy, and draws initial deductions from that analysis. It then applies those deductions to identifying the operational response issues that need to be addressed in order to deal effectively with future piracy outbreaks. Although written as a stand-alone report, it complements, and is complemented by, reports from the other DMPP modules. Details: Halifax, Nova Scotia: Dalhousie University, 2012. 154p. Source: Internet Resource: (Marine Affairs Program Technical Report #3): Accessed May 21, 2013 at: http://marineaffairsprogram.dal.ca/Files/Dalhousie-Marine-Affairs-Program-Technical-Report-%233-2012-12.pdf Year: 2012 Country: International URL: http://marineaffairsprogram.dal.ca/Files/Dalhousie-Marine-Affairs-Program-Technical-Report-%233-2012-12.pdf Shelf Number: 128760 Keywords: HostagesMaritime CrimesPirates/Piracy |
Author: Permal, Sumathy Title: Safe Waters: Malaysia’s Response to Enhancing Security in Southeast Asia’s Maritime Domain Summary: Europe and Asia share a long history of multilateral and bilateral relations. Both regions have many things in common including political, economic and cultural ties which have always been closely interlinked. Despite these long-standing relations, new challenges are currently emerging. Maritime security issues such as piracy, cross-border illegal activities and threats emanating from non state actors are bound to pose challenges to the maritime security environment. Malaysia has bilateral and tri-lateral cooperation mechanisms in place to address these challenges, although stronger initiatives along these lines with the EU are yet to materialise. The same can be said of cooperation between the EU and Asia on this issue, and advancing efforts on maritime security in the region and beyond where Malaysia’s interests are at stake require the development of a comprehensive security framework for Europe and Asia. Maritime piracy is a highly sophisticated crime involving all the activities of legitimate company operations although its profits also underwrite other illegal activities such as human trafficking. As with challenges facing other areas of maritime security, there has been scant cooperation between the EU and Asia on addressing this scourge. This study aims to propose links through comprehensive country studies that would bring the EU and Asia closer together in this area by addressing maritime security challenges in the Southeast Asia region with specific attention to issues affecting Malaysia. Details: Kuala Lumpur Malaysia: Maritime Institute of Malaysia, 2012. 23p. Source: Internet Resource: Research Paper: Accessed June 4, 2013 at: http://www.eu-asia.eu/index.php?eID=tx_nawsecuredl&u=0&file=fileadmin/KAS_Files/documents/Paper_Permal.pdf&t=1370440410&hash=de2d3586ef8d80f7905acda873625de38236203b Year: 2012 Country: Malaysia URL: http://www.eu-asia.eu/index.php?eID=tx_nawsecuredl&u=0&file=fileadmin/KAS_Files/documents/Paper_Permal.pdf&t=1370440410&hash=de2d3586ef8d80f7905acda873625de38236203b Shelf Number: 128933 Keywords: Drug TraffickingHuman TraffickingMaritime Crime (Malaysia)Maritime SecurityPirates/PiracyRobberySmuggling |
Author: Madsen, Jens Vestergaard Title: The State of Maritime Piracy 2013 Summary: This report is the latest in a series by Oceans Beyond Piracy tracking the economic and human costs of maritime piracy. For the past three years, OBP has attempted to model the overall impact of Somali piracy on the global economy and on people affected by piracy. In this report, we look at the impact of piracy in 2013. Trends in maritime piracy and armed robbery at sea in 2013 represent a continuation and in some cases an acceleration of issues marked by observers in 2012. The decline in piracy off the coast of Somalia continued, as did attacks, kidnapping, and violence associated with piracy off the West Coast of Africa. Alongside these shifts, the use of armed security aboard ships in the Indian Ocean continued. In recognition of these trends, this report represents an expansion of the scope of the research offered by Oceans Beyond Piracy. Acknowledging the changing face of maritime piracy, this year's report extends the geographic focus of our research to include West African piracy, and compiles both the economic and human costs into one omnibus report. As with previous years, the numbers presented here represent a good-faith effort by Oceans Beyond Piracy and our partners to provide an estimate of the scope and impact of maritime piracy on the maritime community and the other stakeholders impacted by these crimes. Practically, this estimate is limited because of serious challenges relating to the availability of good data on the scope of the problem. This is particularly true in considering piracy and armed robbery at sea off the West Coast of Africa, where the multinational reporting systems supported as a part of the joint effort to address Somali piracy are largely absent. As a result, the information presented here should be considered a studied estimate of the impacts of piracy rather than a definitive and precise report. We welcome comments and constructive suggestions on how to improve our methods used, and as with previous years we have incorporated responses to prior reports into the methods used in this report. Structure of the Report This year's report is broken into four sections. First, we present an overview of what our research has identified as the number of attacks and other key aspects of piracy in 2013. Second, we review the economic and human costs of piracy off the horn of Africa. Third, we do the same for the West Coast of Africa. Finally, we address some of the long-term impacts of piracy. Details: Broomfield, CO: Oceans Beyond Piracy, 2014. 115p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 17, 2014 at: http://oceansbeyondpiracy.org/sites/default/files/attachments/SoP2013-Digital_0.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Africa URL: http://oceansbeyondpiracy.org/sites/default/files/attachments/SoP2013-Digital_0.pdf Shelf Number: 132481 Keywords: Armed Robbery Against ShipsEconomics of CrimeMaritime CrimeMaritime PiracyMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Scott, Kenneth Title: Prosecuting Pirates: Lessons Learned and Continuing Challenges Summary: Since 2005, there has been growing consensus and frequently recurring calls in the international community for the leaders, financiers, and land-based facilitators of modern maritime piracy to be prosecuted. There is broad recognition (at least in concept and rhetoric) that successfully prosecuting the low-level skiff pirates, while part of the equation, will ultimately have limited impact on ending or substantially reducing piracy, at least in terms of the law enforcement and prosecution components of national and international counter-piracy efforts. Indeed, one of the four priorities of the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia for 2013 and beyond is "[t]o strengthen and focus law enforcement efforts to disrupt pirate networks ashore, including by establishing effective information exchanges among prosecutors, investigators and private industry" Yet to date, with the exception of the conviction of two pirate negotiators (which might be considered mid-level management) and the recent arrest of pirate leader Mohamed Abdi Hassan (better known as "Afweyne") in Belgium, there have been no prosecutions of higher- or top-level pirate leaders, financiers, or facilitators. While approximately 1,200 pirates have been, or are being prosecuted in various parts of the world (primarily in Somalia, 402; Kenya, 164; Yemen, 129; and Seychelles, 124),2 almost none of them can be considered anything more than low-level skiff pirates. Why is that the case, and what lessons can the international community and national authorities learn from our experience fighting East African piracy, in fighting piracy elsewhere, or indeed dealing with other international and transnational crime? Details: Broomfield, CO: Oceans Beyond Piracy, 2014. 66p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 1, 2014 at: http://oceansbeyondpiracy.org/sites/default/files/attachments/ProsecutingPiratesReportDigital_2.pdf Year: 2014 Country: International URL: http://oceansbeyondpiracy.org/sites/default/files/attachments/ProsecutingPiratesReportDigital_2.pdf Shelf Number: 132579 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: U.S. Government Accountability Office Title: Maritime Security: Ongoing U.S. Counterpiracy Efforts Would Benefit From Agency Assessments Summary: Piracy incidents off the Horn of Africa's east coast near Somalia have declined sharply since 2010, but U.S. agencies have not assessed their counterpiracy efforts as GAO recommended in 2010. Since 2010, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) reports piracy incidents declined from 219 to 15 in 2013. Similarly, from 2010 to 2013 hostages taken by pirates declined from 1,016 to 34. Also, a World Bank report stated that total ransoms declined by 2012. Officials participating in counterpiracy activities from the Departments of Defense and State, among others, as well as shipping industry officials and international partners, attribute the decline to a combination of prevention, disruption, and prosecution activities. However, officials cautioned that this progress is tenuous, and discontinuing these efforts could allow piracy to resurge. Despite changing conditions, U.S. agencies have not systematically assessed the costs and benefits of their counterpiracy efforts. Agency officials stated that their decisions and actions are guided by discussions rather than formal assessments. GAO has previously noted that assessments of risk and effectiveness in an interagency environment can strengthen strategies and resource usage. As such, GAO's prior recommendations remain valid and could help U.S. agencies identify the most cost effective mix of efforts and prioritize activities as they respond to changing conditions and fiscal pressures while avoiding a resurgence in piracy. Off the west coast of Africa, piracy and maritime crime has been a persistent problem in the Gulf of Guinea, as shown in the figure below. Although the United States has interagency and international efforts underway with African states to strengthen maritime security, it has not assessed its efforts or the need for a collective plan to address the evolving problem in the region. The U.S. role in addressing piracy in the Gulf of Guinea has focused on prevention, disruption, and prosecution, through training and assistance to African coastal states. However, according to U.S. agencies working in the region, the National Security Council Staff (NSCS) has not directed them to collectively assess their efforts to address piracy and maritime crime. An assessment of agencies' Gulf of Guinea efforts could strengthen their approach by informing the appropriate mix of activities to achieve the most effective use of limited resources, as well as help determine if additional actions are needed. Details: Washington, DC: GAO, 2014. 59p. Source: Internet Resource: GAO-14-422: Accessed July 28, 2014 at: https://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=755244 Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: https://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=755244 Shelf Number: 132795 Keywords: Maritime CrimeMaritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: Diallo, Ismaila Title: A profile of crime markets in Dakar Summary: Several criminal markets - ranging from drug trafficking to human trafficking, piracy and counterfeiting, trafficking of pharmaceuticals, cybercrime and money laundering - can be found in Dakar, Senegal. This paper profiles those criminal markets currently active in the city and its suburbs, analyzing their structures, operations and transnational dimensions. The expansion of these criminal markets is a matter of considerable concern for West Africa's economic and social development. In every case, 'regardless of the criminal market... the common denominator is always exploitation for profit. This exploitation ultimately affects the entire country: its people and institutions; its' economic prosperity; and its social fabric'. Details: Pretoria: Institute for Security Studies, 2014. 12p. Source: Internet Resource: ISS Paper 264: Accessed August 14, 2014 at: http://www.issafrica.org/uploads/Paper264.pdf Year: 2014 Country: South Africa URL: http://www.issafrica.org/uploads/Paper264.pdf Shelf Number: 133050 Keywords: Counterfeit MedicinesCriminal Networks (South Africa)CybercrimeDrug TraffickingHuman TraffickingMoney LaunderingOrganized CrimePirates/Piracy |
Author: Besley, Timothy Title: One Kind of Lawlessness: Estimating the Welfare Cost of Somali Piracy Summary: This paper estimates the effect of piracy attacks on shipping costs using a unique data set on shipping contracts in the dry bulk market. We look at shipping routes whose shortest path exposes them to piracy attacks and find that the increase in attacks in 2008 lead to around a ten percent increase in shipping costs. We use this estimate to get a sense of the welfare loss imposed by piracy. Our intermediate estimate suggests that the creation of $120 million of revenue for pirates in the Somalia area led to a welfare loss of over $1.5 billion. Details: Barcelona: Barcelona Graduate School of Economics, 2012 66p. Source: Internet Resource: IAE Working Paper: Accessed September 10, 2014 at: http://pareto.uab.es/wp/2012/89812.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Somalia URL: Shelf Number: 133259 Keywords: Maritime Crime (Somalia) Pirates/Piracy |
Author: Fantaye, Demessie Title: Regional approaches to maritime security in the Horn of Africa Summary: This study, commissioned by the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES), seeks to unravel the dynamics and impact of maritime security in the Horn of Africa region. It also has the objective of assessing the strengths and weaknesses, synergies and contradictions of existing initiatives and programmes related to maritime security in the region. Ultimately, the study aims to identify the components of a distinctly African and specifically regional approach to maritime security issues. Methodologically, the study is based on a review and analysis of the literature. Furthermore, the author carried out a series of interviews with officials of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development, IGAD Security Sector Programme (IGAD, IGAD-ISSP) and the Ethiopian Shipping Lines (ESL). The author also relied on field notes and data gathered from research visits to Somalia (Puntland) to study Somali piracy in 2009 and 2010. The study argues that efforts to improve maritime security in the Horn of Africa region have assumed a pattern in terms of which the concerns and perspectives of the developed world have tended to overshadow the agenda of the states in the region. This dichotomy is revealed, for instance, in the interpretation of the sources of maritime insecurity, the focus of initiatives and the informal division of tasks concerning maritime security that has emerged in the region. While as far as the international community is concerned the primary concern is maritime piracy, actors in the region have a more complex and structural view of maritime insecurity in the Horn of Africa. This has led to a situation in which immense resources and efforts have been directed to the fight against piracy, while other sources of maritime insecurity have been sidelined. The initiatives against maritime piracy have been characterized by duplication of effort and competition between different agencies and entities. While it is undeniable that the efforts against piracy have achieved impressive results, regional initiatives have received negligible support. States in the region and the primary regional organization have sought repeatedly to articulate a distinct agenda and set of interests in the sphere of maritime security but they have also had to adapt to the circumstances. More specifically, the governments in the region have cooperated with international initiatives and in the process garnered resources and benefits derived from the global focus on piracy off the coast of Somalia. Details: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, 2014. 42p. Source: Internet Resource: FES peace and security series ; 16: Accessed September 17, 2014 at: http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/aethiopien/10880.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Africa URL: http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/aethiopien/10880.pdf Shelf Number: 133332 Keywords: Maritime Crime (Africa) Maritime Security Pirates/Piracy |
Author: Engel, Ulf Title: The African Union, the African peace and security architecture, and maritime security Summary: The content of African maritime security as an emerging policy field is contested. It can be located anywhere between traditional security politics (i.e. related to piracy, maritime terrorism and unregulated fishing), developmental and environmentalist concerns as well as efforts to regain economic sovereignty over African territorial and offshore waters. As a result, since approximately 2005, the institutional place of maritime security in continental politics has been in flux. This paper traces the origins of the debate on maritime security in Africa. The main concern here is to examine the relationship between the nascent African Peace and Security Architecture on the one hand and maritime security and safety politics on the other from both an institutional and a political perspective. Maritime security represents one of a number of peace and security-related policy fields in-the-making that also allows for insights into the division of labor emerging among various stakeholders, such as the AUC, RECs, and AU member states - and the related challenges of policy coordination and harmonization. Details: Addis Ababa : Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, 2014. Addis Ababa : Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, 2014. 32p. Source: Internet Resource: FES peace and security series ; 13: Accessed September 18, 2014 at: http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/aethiopien/10878.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Africa URL: http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/aethiopien/10878.pdf Shelf Number: 133377 Keywords: Maritime Crime (Africa)Maritime SecurityPirates/Piracy |
Author: United Nations Institute for Training and Research Title: UNOSAT Global Report on maritime piracy: A geospatial analysis 1995-2013 Summary: This global report on maritime piracy has identified several important trends related to maritime security. Based on a refined and detailed analysis of primarily data from International Maritime Organization (IMO) Global Integrated Shipping Information System (GISIS) "Piracy and Armed Robbery" module UNITAR has been able to explore how trends in geospatial patterns and severity of reported piracy incidents are developing, from 1995 to 2013. Some detailed geospatial analyses focus on the period 2006-2013 due to improved records for geo-locating incidents. Our analysis includes the added cost of piracy for the maritime industry at a global level and how these are linked to anti-piracy initiatives. Furthermore, costs related to paid ransoms and effects on the local economy in piracy land-bases are explored. There are two areas where significant trends in piracy activities are observed: the Western Indian Ocean, including the Gulf of Aden, and the Gulf of Guinea. In other areas, notably eastern Indian Ocean, including the Malacca Strait, and in South America, no major trends are observed. While activities in South America are relatively minor, piracy in the Malacca Strait continues to be a major disruptior for safe routes in the eastern Indian Ocean. Details: Geneva: United Nations Institute for Training and Research, 2014. 40p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 1, 2015 at: http://unosat.web.cern.ch/unosat/unitar/publications/UNITAR_UNOSAT_Piracy_1995-2013.pdf Year: 2014 Country: International URL: http://unosat.web.cern.ch/unosat/unitar/publications/UNITAR_UNOSAT_Piracy_1995-2013.pdf Shelf Number: 135104 Keywords: Geospatial AnalysisMaritime CrimeMaritime PiracyMaritime SecurityPirates/PiracyRansoms |
Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Title: Transnational Organized Crime in Eastern Africa: A Threat Assessment Summary: Key Findings: - Transnational organized crime in Eastern Africa is a product of both illicit markets that span continents and an underlying weakness in the rule of law. - Due to conflict and poverty, Eastern Africa produces a large and vulnerable stream of smuggled migrants, who are abused and exploited at multiple stages of their journey. - More than 100,000 people paid smugglers to transport them across the Gulf of Aden or Red Sea to Yemen in 2012, generating an income for the boatmen of over US$15 million. - Around 80,000 of these migrants attempted to cross Yemen to Saudi Arabia, but many of these were waylaid by smugglers and subjected to a range of abuses, including confinement, beatings, extortion and rape. - Despite the large numbers, the flow of migrants is concentrated, with most embarking from two port areas (Obock, Djibouti and Boosaaso, Somalia) where interventions could be addressed. - Heroin has been trafficked to and through Eastern Africa since at least the 1980s, but a series of recent large seizures suggests that this flow has increased. - Some air couriering has been noted, but it appears the great bulk of the heroin is being transported by dhow from the Makran Coast, an area that spans Iran and Pakistan. - The local market is estimated to consume at least 2.5 tons of pure heroin per year, worth some US$160 million in local markets. The volumes trafficked to the region appear to be much larger, as much as 22 tons, suggesting substantial tran-shipment. Eastern Africa is a known transit area for heroin destined for South Africa and West Africa. - Given the prevalence of blood borne disease and known injection drug use, the spread of heroin throughout the region must be carefully monitored and addressed. - Recent research indicates that the rate of poaching in Eastern Africa has increased, rising to levels that could threaten the local elephant population. - The bulk of the large ivory shipments from Africa to Asia appears to pass through the container ports of Kenya and the United Republic of Tanzania, where interventions could be addressed. - It is estimated that between 5,600 and 15,400 elephants are poached in Eastern Africa annually, producing between 56 and 154 metric tons of illicit ivory, of which two-thirds (37 tons) is destined for Asia, worth around US$30 million in 2011. - Somali pirates brought in an estimated US$150 million in 2011, which is equivalent to almost 15% of Somalia's GDP. - Effective intervention has forced pirates to range ever further from the coast to attain their targets: in 2005, the average successful pirate attack was 109 km from the Somali coast; in 2012, it was 746 km. Ships have also become more effective at defending themselves. - The increase in risk associated with protracted expeditions and international countermeasures have contributed to a decline in piracy: in April of 2009 alone, pirates hijacked 16 ships, but after April 2011, they averaged less than one per month. There were no successful hijackings for ransom in the Somali area of operations in the first half of 2013. Details: Vienna: UNODC, 2013. 54p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 28, 2015 at: http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/Studies/TOC_East_Africa_2013.pdf Year: 2013 Country: Africa URL: http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/Studies/TOC_East_Africa_2013.pdf Shelf Number: 129829 Keywords: Animal PoachingDrug TraffickingElephantsHeroinHuman SmugglingIvoryMigrantsOrganized CrimePirates/PiracyWildlife Crime |
Author: Ahmed, Fatma Title: Unravelling the Puzzle of Piracy: A Somali Perspective Summary: The UN Security Council has issued ten resolutions dealing specifically with piracy off the coast of Somalia. There has since been a growing concern among international, regional and maritime actors about the potential threats posed by the phenomenon of piracy as long as Somali waters remain in a state of lawlessness. Academics and international maritime actors have analysed the several dimensions of the threat to the global economy and global security that piracy off the Horn of Africa constitutes. However, there is a considerable gap in analysing the implications of piracy within Somalia and the broader local consequences. The present thesis addresses this gap and offers a Somali perspective on the dynamic challenges of piracy. Such analysis will inform the debate on prospects for long-term eradication of Somali piracy and propose pragmatic local solutions to confront the piracy problem within Somalia. The main body of this thesis is divided into three parts: Part I analyses the political and social context of piracy to understand why it has flourished practically unfettered; Part II investigates its core characteristics to identify internal stakeholders; Part III proposes to re- think the counter-piracy approach to allow Somali people themselves to be at the forefront of tackling and eradicating piracy. Details: Hamburg, Germany: Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy (IFSH), University of Hamburg, 2013. 58p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 10, 2019 at: http://www.css.ethz.ch/en/services/digital-library/publications/publication.html/175096 Year: 2013 Country: Somalia URL: http://www.css.ethz.ch/en/services/digital-library/publications/publication.html/175096 Shelf Number: 155746 Keywords: Maritime Crime Maritime Law Enforcement Maritime Security Pirates/Piracy |