Piracy in Somalia
What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear the word pirate? To this day, pirates are still roaming the oceans in search of some loot; not necessarily treasure, but food, money, or supplies necessary for survival. This research paper will examine the history of piracy, along with the causes and effects of pirate-related activity and why piracy still exists.
What exactly is piracy? Well, it is the practice of attacking and robbing ships at sea. The basic concept behind piracy has remained the same for thousands of years, dating back to 14th century B.C. “An inscription on an Egyptian clay tablet depicted a group of people being attacked on the coast of Egypt.” (Vallar, “The History of Maritime Piracy”). However, the first evident indication of piracy originated a little later in Ancient Greece over 2,000 years ago during the Archaic (800-500 B.C.) and Classical (500-320 B.C.) periods. The pirates intercepted ships attempting to trade goods across the Mediterranean and Aegean Sea. The Aegean contained plenty of small islands which were used by pirates as safe havens. In fact, the term pirate originated from the Greek word “peirato”, which referred to people who tried to attack without authority. Homer, an ancient Greek author, wrote about piracy for the first time in The Odyssey. Although he didn’t specifically support piracy, he did say that pirates were able to achieve high social status.
A present-day example can be seen off the coast of Somalia. Pirates have been a threat to international trade since the second phase of the Somali Civil War, which began in 2005. Since 2005, pirates have invaded many international organizations that sail through their waters, including the International Ma...
... middle of paper ...
...ates don’t kill crew members; however, there have been many scenarios that resulted in death. Pirates also put ship members at danger before they even board the ship. They have many weapons at their disposal, which are used to shoot at targeted vessels along with anyone on board. If the pirates are able to successfully deploy their grappling hooks or ladders onto the ship, they are a threat to directly harm anyone on a ship.
Another result of piracy in Somalia has affected the local population. “SomaliaReport and AllAfrica.com both reported significant increases in the price of basic food commodities (such as sugar, rice, and wheat flour) and petrol as a direct result of pirate hijackings of commercial vessels.” (Hurlburt, “The Human Cost of Somali Piracy”). Although there are other factors that are able to cause this increase, piracy is cited as a primary reason.
...rates to succeed in the open waters alone. Pirates also lost their justification when the Spanish accepted the independence of their former colonies in South and Central America so piracy all but vanished when the governors in Cuba and Puerto Rico stopped providing support. The Navy’s relentless fighting contributed to a great decrease in piracy within ten years which not only led to greater United States prosperity but that of all nations with commerce paths through that region.
Privateering is said to be "almost as old as civilization itself" with the Japanese and Chinese practicing it as early as 1200 B.C (Massachusetts Society). It really started to pick up around the 1500s during Queen Elizabeth's reign over England. One of her major goals during her rule was to strengthen England's navy and eventually make it the world's number one sea power. To do this she created the Sea Dogs, also known as "Elizabethan Pirates", who were to go out onto the sea and attack Spanish ships (even in times of peace). Each was given a "Letter of Marque" as permission to deal in these acts of would-be piracy (Wikipedia.org). Though the Sea Dogs are famous for many things, one of the most remarkable is their assistance in the destruction of the Spanish Armada.
It is first beneficial to know the definition of piracy. Piracy has been characterized multiple ways from multiple disciplines. For the purpose of this paper, I will apply the definition of piracy from the 1982 United ...
Cordingly’s book Under the Black Flag: The Romance and Reality of Life Among the Pirates tells the story of many different pirates of different time periods by the facts. The book uses evidence from first hand sources to combat the image of pirates produced by fictional books, plays, and films. Cordingly explains where the fictional ideas may have come from using the evidence from the past. The stories are retold while still keeping the interest of the audience without having to stray from the factual
Phillips, Richard, and Stephan Talty. A captain's duty: Somali pirates, Navy Seals, and dangerous days at sea. New York: Hyperion, 2010.
The history of piracy dates back more than 3000 years. “It appears that the word pirate (peirato) was first used in about 140 BC by the Roman historian Polybius. The Greek historian Plutarch, writing in about 100 A.D., gave the oldest clear definition of piracy. He described pirates as those who attack without legal authority not only ships, but also maritime cities (http://www.piratesinfo.com/history/history.php).” The most common meaning of the word pirate recognizes them as an outlaw and a thief. Anyone who was caught and tried with the act of piracy would be sentenced to death.
In this paper, I will attempt to describe the piracy problem in China, discuss how the Chinese government is dealing with it, present the global effect, and finally arrive at what would be an ethical solution to piracy fitting for China's situation.
Whatever you do, safe is first. Ocean shipping probably will meet with the pirates that could lead economic loss.
The United States of America is a free country, then why shouldn’t the internet be free? Why should we have restrictions placed on what we can and cannot do on the internet? Every day, millions of users share files on the internet through numerous online sources. Whether they download music, movies, or software, online file-sharing can give people access to a plentiful amount of information. These files are often free and easily accessible by anyone. The practice of distributing or providing access to digitally stored information represents file sharing (Peer-to-Peer File-Sharing and Copyright Infringement: Are You Vulnerable?). Conversely many people see file sharing as unlawful. The reproduction or distribution of any copyrighted digital media or information defines internet piracy. Many people see downloading copyright files such as music, movies, books, and software as illegal. Music files, some of the first types of files to be reproduced and distributed through internet sources, contain the file extension .mp3. Several popular file sharing programs were developed in the 1990s and facilitated internet piracy. Big industries try to combat file sharing to help increase their revenue, however internet piracy actually increases revenue of industries and has numerous other benefits (What Is Internet Piracy?). The copy and distribution of digital files increased due to technology (Torr). Internet piracy, considered a problem all over the world, stands as difficult to stop along with other kinds of piracy (What Is Internet Piracy?). Anything can be digitalized and once something becomes digitalized it will be shared all over the internet (Torr). Canadian and European laws allow for the downloading of copyright files for personal us...
The Golden Age of Piracy began around 1650, and ended around 1730. Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea, but can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the criminal. The term has been used throughout history to refer to raids across land borders by non-state agents. A pirate is one who commits robberies at sea, usually without being allotted to do so by any particular nation. The usual crime for piracy can include being hung, or publically executed. Some of the most famous pirates who were killed either because of piracy, or because of natural causes, are Barbarossa, Stede Bonnet, Anne Bonney, Sir Francis Drake, Captain Greaves, William Kidd, Jean Laffite, Sir Henry Morgan, Mary Read, and Giovanni da Verrazano.
Although Britain cannot be blamed though for lack of trying, piracy still exists today. Yet, because the act continues at sea often far from land, it gains little media attention, and therefore less action from governments. China, despite being a number one producer of pirates, continues to deny that there is a problem while at the same time often pardoning those who are caught. Countries such as Indonesia and Philippines, which have been hardest hit in the past few years by pirates, are looking for international assistance. The West is, of course, looked to for solutions yet choose seemingly chooses to turn a blind eye, perhaps in the name of diplomacy. When the world is ready to combat the perpetual problem of piracy, it may discover that by intertwining tougher policies aimed at dealing with piracy with current or future trade negotiations, productive steps can be taken to initiate plans to curtail modern day sea wolves who prey on the helpless. The suggestion of ‘Piracy Charters’ will be discussed further as the means of which to add the topic of to multilateral agreements.
“Piracy and Armed Robbery Against Ships,” The International Maritime Organization, Accessed March 26th, 2014. http://www.imo.org/OurWork/Security/PiracyArmedRobbery/Pages/Default.aspx
Piracy is a form of theft. Specifically, it refers to the unauthorized copying or use of intellectual property. Intellectual property is knowledge or expression that is owned by someone. There are three major types of intellectual property: 1) creative works, including music, written material, movies, and software, which are protected by copyright law; 2) inventions, which are protected by patent law; and 3) brand-name products, which are protected by trademarks. Many of the issues surrounding piracy have to do with the difference between intellectual property and physical property. A CD, for example, is a piece of physical property, but the songs on the CD are intellectual property. A customer in a record store can purchase a CD, but someone else still owns, or more precisely, has the copyright to the songs on the CD.
Internet piracy is not a victimless crime. Piracy is a term used to describe the illegal downloading of music, movies, games, and even software online. Although many people don’t feel that piracy is a crime that affects anybody, it really does. People pirate stuff online because it is free and does not require one to run to a store to get their product. People that pirate these things don’t think of the repercussions that go along with it. You can have to serve up to 10 years in prison, and pay a fine of $250,000.
All around the world people connected to the internet are downloading free digital content through P2P file sharing software.