Current trends in global piracy: can Somalia's successes help combat piracy in the Gulf of Guinea and elsewhere?

AuthorHodgkinson, Sandra L.
PositionEnd Game: An International Conference on Combating Maritime Piracy

While piracy is an age-old crime, it has recently re-emerged in different forms off the Coast of Somalia, in the Gulf of Guinea, and through the international straits of Indonesia. Acts of piracy surged off the Somali Coast of Somalia between 2008 and 2011 and began to decline over the past year. However, while piracy may have begun its decline off the Coast of Somalia, it is now growing steadily elsewhere, including on the East Coast of Africa in the Gulf of Guinea, Indonesia, and Malaysia. This article discusses these current global trends in piracy. It also describes successful efforts that the international community has used to combat piracy off the Coast of Somalia, and assesses whether these efforts can be exported to other piracy hotbeds around the world.

CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION II. GLOBAL TRENDS IN PIRACY III. DECLINE OF PIRACY OFF THE COAST OF SOMALIA--HOW DID IT HAPPEN? A. Maritime Patrols by International Naval Forces B. Best Management Practices C. Armed Security Guards on Ships D. International Piracy Prosecutions IV. EXPORTING SUCCESS TO OTHER PIRACY HOTBEDS SUCH AS THE GULF OF GUINEA AND INDONESIA A. Gulf of Guinea B. Indonesia C. Elsewhere V. CONCLUSION I. INTRODUCTION

While piracy is an age-old crime, it has recently re-emerged in a few different varieties off the Coast of Somalia, in the Gulf of Guinea, and through the international straits of Indonesia. Global acts of piracy rose quickly off the Coast of Somalia from 2008 to 2011, (1) and then fell during the 2013 time period, (2) signaling possible success in the international methods used to combat piracy in this region. Most notably, but possibly not as a direct consequence of the decline, key pirate leader Mohamed Abdi Hassan announced "his retirement" from the Somali pirate business, (3) demonstrating just how commonplace piracy has become in the life of Somalis. However, while piracy may be declining off the Coast of Somalia, it is now growing steadily on the East Coast of Africa in the Gulf of Guinea, (4) Indonesia (5) and Malaysia, among other regions. (6) This article will first discuss the current global trends in piracy and how they are emerging. It will next identify the methods that the international community has used to effectively counter the piracy threat off the Coast of Somalia, contributing to piracy's sharp decline over the past year. Finally, this article will assess whether these methods, which have been so successful off the Coast of Somalia can be exported to address the emerging piracy threat in the Gulf of Guinea and other piracy hotbeds around the world.

  1. GLOBAL TRENDS IN PIRACY

    From 2001 to 2010, Indonesia and Somalia had roughly the same number of pirate attacks, with 990 in Indonesia and 968 in Somalia, although Somalia's annual number grew tenfold over this time period while Indonesia's declined. (7) Comparatively, Nigeria was in third place, with 330 attacks over this time period, also growing sharply toward the end of this period. (8) As indicated above, the number of attacks in Somalia is now in decline, while the number of attacks in Nigeria and the Gulf of Guinea are on the rise, and Indonesia continues to face significant challenges with piracy. (9) In Indonesia, the number of piracy attacks remains high, with sixty-eight attacks for 2013 by the end of October, but these attacks have been characterized as lower level in nature and far less violent. (10)

    While not every act of piracy is the same, there are general regional trends in how acts of piracy are carried out. Recent "Somali-style" piracy has been characterized by smaller ships using arms and modern GPS systems to take larger vessels by force. (11) A principal tactic used in Somali piracy has been the kidnapping of crew members for ransom. (12) These acts of piracy have generally been carried out by lower level pirate foot soldiers, (13) many of whom are poor juveniles from Somalia. The higher-ups who have financed and led Somali piracy are smaller in number and have generally not been involved in the acts of piracy themselves, but have greatly profited from the enterprise. (14) In 2011, the U.N. estimated that numbers of pirates included 10-20 financiers, 50 main pirate leaders, 300 leaders of pirate attack groups, and approximately 2,500 lower level foot soldiers. (15) At the peak of the Somali piracy epidemic in 2010-2011, pirates were reported to have caused more than $25 billion in losses (16) with great profit to the senior leaders of this enterprise. Further, in response to this growing trend, insurance companies saw increased sales of kidnap and ransom policies, paying out large ransoms for piracy-associated kidnappings. (17)

    While some basic elements of piracy attacks are similar everywhere--pirates attack vessels and tend to avoid attacking vessels at sea rather than in port where there is security and lighting (18)--there are some key distinctions in how global piracy trends are emerging. In the Gulf of Guinea, for example, the overall trend for piracy attacks over the past year has been more traditional, in that pirates are focused on stealing ships' cargoes, principally oil, (19) rather than kidnapping crews for ransom. This is partly because of the significant transit of oil from Nigeria and the region through the Gulf of Guinea, both legitimate and illegitimate to include oil bunkering. (20) Notwithstanding cargo seizures, there are some very recent reports of kidnapping in Nigeria and a rising concern that many abductions are not reported so as to avoid scrutiny over amounts paid. (21)

    The general territories of piracy attacks have also changed in recent years. In Somalia, much of the piracy has occurred in the high seas; in contrast, the majority of the Gulf of Guinea piracy incidents occur within the territorial waters of Nigeria and Benin. (22) In Asia as well, including Indonesia, piracy attacks also tend to occur closer to shore, where pirates know the islands, inlets and waterways, rather than in the high seas. (23)

    A more generic trend that is not specific to any one region is the shift from piracy being a purely nocturnal crime to one that may just as likely occur in the daytime. (24) Also, while traditionally pirate attacks were carried out on stationary vessels, they are now also likely to occur when the target ship is moving, although this trend is more visible in Somalia and Indonesia than in other regions. (25) A more traditional trend, theft continues to be a principal motivator for piracy attacks globally, making the kidnappings in Somalia, (26) and now possibly Nigeria, (27) exceptions rather than the rule.

  2. DECLINE OF PIRACY OFF THE COAST OF SOMALIA--HOW DID IT HAPPEN?

    The decline in Somali piracy can be largely credited to the four principal ways the international community has used to address the problem: (1) maritime patrols by international naval forces; (2) industry development of a series of "Best Management Practices" (BMPs) (28) for preventing piracy attacks; (3) the increased use of armed security personnel on board ships; and (4) the increase in international prosecutions for the crime of piracy.

    1. Maritime Patrols by International Naval Forces

      Deployment of maritime patrols by international naval forces has been a well-coordinated international effort that has developed to combat piracy off the coast of Somalia. In 2008, the European Union first created EU NAVFOR Somalia ("European Naval Force") under the auspices of U.N. Security Council Resolutions. (29) The purpose of this initial naval force was to protect vulnerable ships off the Somali coast and deliver food aid. (30) Around the same time, NATO also created a Standing NATO Maritime Group and conducted Operation Allied Provider, which escorted World Food Program vessels and patrolled the region to the extent possible. (31) Operation Allied Protector and Operation Ocean Shield followed over the next few years, making the NATO contribution to this anti-piracy effort extremely significant. (32)

      The U.S. began its own antipiracy operation, Combined Task Force 151 (CTF-151), in January 2009 that had an exclusive counter-piracy mission. (33) The Indian Navy also contributed vessels, (34) the Chinese Navy deployed a task force, (35) and the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force deployed several vessels as well, all to support counter piracy efforts. (36) These international maritime interdiction forces have been extremely effective at countering the piracy threat. (37) Recently, British naval forces, operating as part of the Combined Military Forces (CMF) counter piracy task force, apprehended nine pirates after they attempted to pirate the supertanker Island Splendor using gunfire and then attacked a Spanish vessel. (38)

      Given that much of the piracy off the Coast of Somalia has taken place in the high seas, these international naval forces have had to do their best to cover large amounts of territory at a high cost. Further, based on the consent of the Somali government, the U.N. Security Council passed a...

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