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| Africa Horn |
| Navy commander admits: no rules on Somalia pirates |
| 2008-10-22 |
| LONDON, Oct 21 (Reuters) - The commander of a NATO task force on its way to tackle piracy off the coast of Somalia has said he still does not know what the rules are for taking on the high-seas bandits. U.S. Admiral Mark Fitzgerald said while he was aware of where the pirates were operating, there was little he could do militarily to stop them and that guidelines on how to take them on -- including whether to shoot -- were still in the works. "You know, I don't think we've gotten the rules of engagement yet from NATO," Fitzgerald told reporters on Monday during a briefing on U.S. naval operations in Europe and Africa."That's all still being debated in the North Atlantic Council. All we've been told is to prepare a plan to go down there. So (the rules) are going to have to be debated." Six NATO members have contributed ships, including destroyers and frigates, to a special anti-piracy task force following a request from the United Nations. The NATO group passed through the Suez Canal last week on its way to the Horn of Africa, where piracy has surged this year, with more than 30 ships seized and ransoms estimated at $18-$30 million have been paid to free hostages. There are already naval assets from Britain, the United States and Russia in the region, but the area is so vast -- more than 2.5 million square miles -- that it is almost impossible for the pirates to be stopped unless they are caught red-handed. "From a military standpoint, we certainly are limited by what we can do," said Fitzgerald. "How do you prove a guy's a pirate before he actually attacks a ship? We have a problem from the military side at sea because we can't be omnipresent in the space, and the pirates operate at an advantage because ... they don't announce they're a pirate until they attack a ship." Security specialists say there is a window of only about 15 minutes for a navy ship to respond to a distress call and get to another ship that's being hijacked. Once pirates are on board, there's little, legally, that can be done. "You've got a very short window, a short time span, from the point where they decide to board a ship and (actually) board it. If you're not right there, there's not much you can do, and once the ship is taken hostage, then...." The Danish navy learnt to its cost last month what can happen if you do seize suspected pirates. They captured 10 people, but after holding them for six days aboard a Danish ship, the suspects were set free and put ashore in Somalia because the legal conditions surrounding their detention were unclear. Denmark's Defence Ministry said Danish law did not allow for prosecution of the men before a Danish court. The ministry said it had explored the possibility of handing them over to other countries but that was also not feasible. A senior British naval commander admitted last week that it was essentially a legal minefield trying to take on the pirates, and urged commercial ships operating in the region to hire their own private security companies to deal with the threat. Admiral Fitzgerald said the Danish experience showed how weak the impetus was going to be to capture pirates. Instead he said his task force would focus on escorting World Food Programme ships trying to deliver aid to Somalia. Asked how long the mission could last, he said: "It's open-ended right now." |
| Posted by:tu3031 |
| #12 There are LOTS and LOTS of Great White Sharks in the Indian Ocean (wink wink nudge nudge) |
| Posted by: James Carville 2008-10-22 21:07 |
| #11 Oh, and announce that any Somali port town which refuses to act as a registry and licensing point for the flotilla will be shelled until it complies. Then do it. In the end, the best way to bring a pirate coast under control is to burn out the towns that harbor pirate bands. It isn't necessary to bring such a coast under imperial control, but if you don't, then a policy of regular sackings of the lawless towns is the only long-term solution to piracy. Alternatively, you can let it go & quarantine the area until the pirates start turning on the local "authorities". At some point, the pirates will whittle each other down until one or more of them will graduate from piracy to tyranny & assert a monopoly on violence which will effectively end the crime-wave, having nationalized the piracy industry. But don't be surprised if Somalia turns into the 21st Century equivalent of the Barbary Coast. |
| Posted by: Mitch H. 2008-10-22 17:02 |
| #10 Christ. Look - A) Announce a state of martial law in the seas off Somalia. B) Offer to register vessels & their crews at designated points, take an inventory of weapons on board, and issue them papers & get biometrics on the individuals authorized to captain the vessels. C) After an announced period of time, start boarding every vessel encountered in the anti-piracy zone. Every one encountered, no exceptions. D) Unregistered vessels are impounded if they've got more than one rifle on board. Make sure this is part of the initial announcement. E) If a registered vessel is encountered with someone other than the biometric captain-of-record, impound the vessel and arrest the 'crew'. Pull them up before an admiralty court. F) If a crew tries to run, open fire and arrest the survivors, bring them up before the admiralty court. G) HANG THOSE CONVICTED BY THE COURT. H) Promise to deposit any civilian smartasses who show up to push any idiot civilian-court-law interferences in the nearest Somali port, free to travel to the nearest civilian court to press their claims against the duly designated anti-piracy flotilla. |
| Posted by: Mitch H. 2008-10-22 16:55 |
| #9 When did the Anglo American naval forces, not to mention the Viking Danes, turn into wusses? They need instructions from Nato to suppress pirates? Sheesh. These guys need a little less legal supervision. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2008-10-22 16:02 |
| #8 "How do you prove a guy's a pirate before he actually attacks a ship? B/c he carries an RPG in his boat? |
| Posted by: General_Comment 2008-10-22 15:37 |
| #7 4) Decorate your yardarm as appropriate. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2008-10-22 15:27 |
| #6 Here are some rules for pirates, esp. Somali pirates that hang out in that non-state of Somalia. 1. Sink the pirates and their vessels. 2. Interrogate the pirates. 3. Go to Step one. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2008-10-22 14:45 |
| #5 Take, burn, sink or destroy. |
| Posted by: Grunter 2008-10-22 12:40 |
| #4 i thought pirates could outright be killed, sure would solve the problem. Or let me guess that wouyld go against Somali law, if there are any |
| Posted by: chris 2008-10-22 12:40 |
| #3 NATO is as useful as tits on a boar hog |
| Posted by: Yosemite Sam 2008-10-22 11:53 |
| #2 I would like to see rules along the lines of: If they surrender, bring them in. If they try to run, fire a warning shot. If they give up, bring them in. If they still run after warning shot or try to fight, sink their ass. Pick up any survivors. If you catch them in the act of piracy, instant sinking of offending vessels. Pick up any survivors. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2008-10-22 11:52 |
| #1 he was aware of where the pirates were operating, there was little he could do militarily to stop them and that guidelines on how to take them on -- including whether to shoot -- were still in the works. " Once again, its not a military problem. It's a political problem. It comes down to WILL. The pols have absolutely no will when thugs don't play by the rules. Just check your local neighborhoods, be it Chicago or Newark where the thugs rule. The city fathers of Chicago don't want you to have a gun, but they're absolutely useless in providing real protection or of going after the thugs that do. Why should Somali pirates be any different. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2008-10-22 11:48 |