Pirates on the high seas

When a French ship was hijacked in July, a naval operation was conducted to release the tourists on board. It is worth noting that Somali residents are also affected by piracy. The recent suspension of aid shipments by the World Food Programme, in response to an attack on their sea operations threatened the lives of thousands of internally displaced refugees dependent on food aid.

Shipping is the main and fastest way of getting food relief into Somalia. While the UN now uses a Canadian navy escort to deliver food, most of their operations involve using unsurfaced roads through northern Kenya, raising the costs and threatening the survival of half a million people in drought-stricken southern Somalia.

Pirates justify their actions as “coastguard operations” aimed at deterring acts of illegal fishing and toxic waste dumping in Somalia. While these problems do exist and have adversely affected Somalia’s sealine, the pirates are by no means looking out for their environment.

A paralysed government fighting an unwinnable war will not stop piracy off Somalia’s coast, nor will international military operations from countries concerned about their own arms deals. The UN labelled Somalia as “Africa’s worst humanitarian disaster”, and will continue to be linked to further catastrophes if action by the Somali people and their neighbours is not taken.