Piracy in Somalia

During the 16th, 17th and early 18th centuries, piracy was rampant in the Atlantic, specifically in the West Indies. Piracy has existed since the earliest days of ocean travel, for a range of personal and economic reasons. However, one of the major reasons why piracy was wide spread and rampant in the 16th, 17th and early 18th centuries was Great Britain’s endorsement and usage of piracy as an asset; in wars fought in the New World. Great Britain with its expanding power and conflicts with other nations would make piracy a lifestyle and lay down the foundation for the Golden Age of Piracy and eventually bring what it created to a screeching halt.

These pirates captured the crew and passengers of other ships. They then enslaved these people and some people died because of this.

Under The Black Flag , a book written by David Cordingly expressed the reality and myths behind piracy. He clearly states in the introduction of the book that his aim “is to examine the popular image of pirates today, to find out where this image came from, and to compare it with the real world of the pirates” (Cordingly xiv). Along with his aim his thesis is also stated in the introduction of his book, which essentially states that the views by everyday people of pirates consists of a mixture of facts, and many other things such as romantic novels and films. He successfully informs readers of the history behind many important misconceptions of common beliefs. Although some of the things every person has learned about a pirate growing up may

Most people do not know this but piracy on international waters and on the coast of Somalia has become an increasingly important issue to global businesses. Since most people are unaware of this growing problem it has just now been noticed. To help stop piracy most crews are encouraged to have trained officers aboard while shipping cargo to avoid attacks by pirates. 95 percent of the piracy on international waters is by somali pirates. That’s right 95 percent. Piracy is robbery/stealing at sea. Not a lot of people are aware that piracy occurs almost everyday.

The geographical area in which piracy took place was mainly the Mediterranean. Barbary piracy became a very threatening thing. There were many Muslim pirates attacked ships, enslaved crews, plundered cargoes and held numerous captives in their respective areas or countries, but it was done by the Muslims, there were even Christians engaged in this event as well. That time they didn’t have many job to live for. since piracy can get wealth very quickly. It kinds to become a culture alone the Barbary Coast. The violence accompanies with many facts, circumstance, history, ideology, the opportunity to strike. It became their job.

Also included in this book is what happened to pirates when they were caught by the government. If convicted of piracy it often meant a sure death by hanging. Many times the bodies of pirates were hung over harbors and around ports as a warning of the consequences of being a pirate. The government hoped that these drastic measures would help quell the raids of pirates. So this book lets us know that even though pirates have a romanticized appearance, in all reality they were criminals who had their own way of life.

Somalia is one of the world's poorest and least developed countries (Campbell). Because of the Civil War, which broke out in 1991, much of Somalia's economy has been devastated. The war left many

Blackbeard was a brave and most outspoken sea rovers who operated during early 1700s in the coastal regions of the English Southern parts of the New world. His piracy activities, together with his co-pirates are key sectors in United States of America’s history. Happening in the time eminently known as the golden age of piracy, their brave advances in sea robbery facilitated the gradual demise of sea hijacking and theft on the deep seas.1

All this information’s showing us how those pirates grow up fast and become one of the most dangerous group in the Somali coast. Hunter says that most of

Although the history of piracy is often bloody and gruesome, it can be understood that there were certain people who actively sought a life with the pirates as a way of escaping condemnation and judgement at home. Though the pirates are commonly remembered as being quite brutal, something that escapes common knowledge is the fact that they were actually quite tolerant of minorities and marginalised people in their crew. Piracy can be seen as a haven for those suffering from religious intolerance, women who felt more comfortable in male dress, and non-heterosexual men. These were people who would have faced discrimination, imprisonment, or even death at home, but found an escape in life amongst the pirates. On pirate ships these people were openly accepted and received the same treatment as any other crew member.

Starting with those abiding by the law, a pirate would be someone in their job duty to eliminate. This person would be in charge of investigating and setting up meets to track the person down and capture them. Then, there’s the pirate themselves using their illegal work to make money. They find something they’re good at and know how to do and they run with it making it a side business, so to call it. That person would then oversee ensuring the item is set up and ready to go. If there were no more piracy, there would be a potential and rather significant job loss. Eventually with the constant advances in technology, the piracy is going to soar so much that it could potentially drive cable companies right out of

While onboard, the pirates may plan to steal cargo, electronic ad navigation equipment, valuables from unsecured crew accommodations, and money from the captain’s safe. In this case of a bulk vessel, especially in Southeast Asia and Africa, it is most likely that that the target is the entire ships. The attackers, in this case is pirates, are usually armed with knives, machetes, or handguns, but it is very common for pirates to have rifles. Based on ICC IMB Annual Reports in 2005, from 1994 to 2005, the violence to crew and passenger happened all the year with the total number is over than 200 cases even doubled. And the assassination cases had been happened in a decade from 1995 until 2004 with the lower number was 3 in 1999, and higher

Piracy in Somalia has come about due to years of internal fighting and weakened government. With the overthrow of the president in 1991, Somalia has been a complete anarchy with only the laws of rival clans who have been in power. Though long before that the country has been in constant war between the people of the country because money and food have been always been scarce. Small amounts of money have been made through some exports but the real money came from the fishing off the coast. Recently because of the lack of laws commercial fisherman from all over the world have been over-fishing the waters and leaving the Somalis with too few fish to survive. European companies have used this lack of laws as a way to easily dump their

An average pirate sailed for several years before being forced to take a pardon, were walked to the gallows, or got killed in action. Despite the grown risk of premature death, piracy had its sides. Joining a pirate crew made a man a member of a tight community. As Marcus Rediker puts it, “Pirates did not think themselves as common robbers, opposers and violatros of laws humane and divine, but they did think themselves as people without nation.” They were “a gang of proletariat outlaws”. Along with this sense of camaraderie, joining pirates opened a door to a world of “ready money”, democracy, healthcare, ethnic justice and equality, and better provisions of food and drink. Contrary to the common image, pirate ships were well organized and functioned under set of rules (Appendix 1.9 ) established by the captain of the

Today, piracy has resurfaced, but in smaller numbers. It is centered mainly around the Middle East on important waterways. For instance, Somalia and the Gulf of Aden are hotspots for pirates, because the passing cargo ships are full of supplies for African relief (May, Laura. “History of Piracy”).