DON’T FORGET SOMALIA

Author: ARX Maritime CEO, Joshua Hutchinson

Pirates are opportunistic by nature.

Consider the following if you will.

How does one become a pirate?

Why does one become a pirate?

It’s certainly is not for the faint of heart. Every day you risk imprisonment and
death.

Humans, by their very nature are risk averse if they can help it. So why do
people turn to piracy? The answer is simple. Because they feel there’s no other
choice.

When it comes to protecting themselves and their loved ones, common sense
is the first thing to go out the window. Thoughts of morality and law are
superseded by instinct. East & West Africa. Southeast Asia & South America. All
regions ravaged by socioeconomic inequality. Rampant crime and corruption.
Political instability and malicious opportunism.

People living in these regions know what it means to be truly vulnerable. And if
by premeditated action, or mere happenstance, they are backed into a corner
from which there is seemingly no escape, make no mistake, they will start to
reevaluate their priorities.

Somalia is a characteristic example of what happens when desperation meets

anarchy.

In the early 80’s, Somali coastal development received a significant investment

boost which resulted in the creation of a thriving fishing economy. The local
Somali population greatly benefited from this, as more and more people
turned towards fishing. The unexploited marine stocks of Somalia were a
lucrative opportunity for both Somali citizens and foreign investors.

However, the collapse of the Somali government following their civil war
and the subsequent disbanding of the Somali Navy,all but ensured that
the exploitation of Somali resources by foreign elements would proceed
uncontested. Foreign fishing trawlers began fishing illegally in the region and
vessels would dump hazardous waste off the Somali coast.

People with very little to lose got backed into a corner.

The maritime industry is well acquainted with what followed. An unprecedented

series of attacks over several years.
 DON’T FORGET SOMALIA
Author: ARX Maritime CEO, Joshua Hutchinson

It took the UN Security Council more than a decade to This move on behalf of the Somali government carries with it
effectively curtail piracy in the region. significant risk.

Today, Somalia is a country torn by infighting and lawlessness. Over in West Africa, Chinese vessels have often been accused of
The central government doesn’t have much influence outside draining fish stocks, using clandestine methods to obtain fishing
Mogadishu and struggles to keep what little semblance of licenses, threatening the livelihood of fishermen in the process.4
control it has. But regardless of the instability present in the
region, many areas in Somalia are Truth of the matter is, Somalia lacks the
thriving, and that is because of means with which to police its fisheries.
The absence of such infrastructure is what
piracy itself.
“The Somalis are led to the birth of Somali piracy in the first
A lot of cash from the pirates went
back into the local communities,
turning back into place.

providing a massive economic
boost to the region, slowly turning
humble hamlets into burgeoning
boomtowns.
The uncomfortable truth is that
piracy worked out for the Somali
people.
Furthermore, since foreign fishing trawlers dare not enter
Somali waters, the once depleting fish stocks of Somalia have
greatly recovered due to the lack of commercial-scale fishing.1
The Somalis are slowly turning back into fishermen.2 But they
still remember the lessons they learned as pirates. Piracy
works. Foreign vessels might not listen to your pleas, but they
will listen to your guns.
fishermen, but they If the country lacks the power to enforce
its policies, how can they be sure that the
still remember the Chinese fishing fleets will abide by the
regulations put in place?
lessons they learned
Admittedly, Beijing is doing its part to
as pirates.” try and crack down on such activities5,
but when there is significant profit to be
made people will find a way of bending
the rules in order to get to it.
Just last week, the Argentine Navy opened fire on Chinese
vessels fishing illegally in their EEZ.6 Iran has proceeded to detain
Chinese trawlers that have been caught fishing in their waters.7
The Chinese commercial fishing sector has time and again shown
a blatant disregard for international law. Are their unofficial
established practices going to change all of a sudden?

The majority of the local populace in Somalia still believes that
piracy is a legitimate way of defending the country’s territorial
waters.3
Granted, piracy levels in Somalia nowadays are at an all-time
low. However, policymakers are beginning to forget past
lessons, and history is threatening to repeat itself. In late
December, Somalia arranged fishing licenses for up to 31
Chinese vessels.
More specifically, the licenses are associated with China’s
Overseas Fisheries Association, a distant-water trawling group
created back in 2012 with the aim of promoting China’s fishing
industry abroad.
The burning question here remains. Are there any guarantees that
China won’t be depleting Somalia’s freshly recovered fisheries?
There is no clear answer, and if that ends up being the case,
Somalis will once again be put between a rock and a hard place.
And when that happens, they will turn to their old ways. Because
as far as Somalis are concerned: Piracy works.
We might have become better at combating piracy at sea, but
the conditions that created pirates in the first place are still here.
Ignoring them at a legislative level might carry potential short-
term benefits, but it is not without its fair share of long-term
military risks.

1 - https://web.archive.org/web/20101025135024/http://a24media.com/downloads/pdf/scripts/english/kenyan_fishermen_celebrate_somali_pirates.pdf
2 - https://youtu.be/IrPq9iiG8n8
3 - https://www.huffingtonpost.com/johann-hari/you-are-being-lied-to-abo_b_155147.html
4 - https://qz.com/africa/1421270/chinese-companies-dominate-ghanas-industrial-fishing-sector/
5 - https://qz.com/africa/1228703/china-deals-with-illegally-fishing-in-west-africa-canceling-licenses-and-removing-subsidies/
6 - https://arxmaritime.com/news/argentine-coast-guard-opens-fire-on-chinese-fishing-trawler/
7 - https://www.fleetmon.com/maritime-news/2019/25421/iran-revolutionary-guards-arresting-chinese-fishin/
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