The world is staring at an almost surreal scene: 34 naval battleships from 11 different nations fight Somali fishermen, who engage in piracy and hijack ships of any size and nationality crossing the Aden Gulf. Yet the rising rate of attacks underlines the inefficiency of the current approach. International efforts should focus on building a sustainable Somali nation. But let us be very careful. Somalia is also the symbol of the failures of the international response to the humanitarian crisis in the nineties. We need a new, regional approach.
Why the war against piracy will not be won at sea
For a long time, the issue of piracy was viewed as a regional problem. As a result, the international response, though spectacular and more or less coordinated, was limited in its impact. There are three reasons behind the disappointing performance:
- Despite the extent of the international cooperation, this approach remains a "plug holes" policy. So far, it has consisted of a patchwork of regional (Operation Atalanta, NATO) and national initiatives (Russia, Israel, India, etc) brought together to ensure the security of their shipping lanes. A coordinated, long-term strategy on how to fight piracy is still lacking.
- It is impossible to sustain an ever-present military escort for each and every ship crossing 2 million square kilometers of sea.
- Turning the sea into a potential battlefield is bound to increase violence, will require bigger naval equipment, and, it appears, will have a disproportionally small effect. "Declaring war on piracy" could turn the Aden Gulf into a bloodbath, in the best interest of the pirates: the victory of war over law and order would revive the old curse of past international failures in the region.
Solutions
However, naval forces can be an efficient way to arrest pirates, and thus pave the way for prosecution - if legal tools are enforced and when available. Unlike the Somali state territory, the sea is far from a lawless territory. The Montego Bay Convention and the International Maritime Bureau provide the legal tools to arrest pirates; the international follow-up - the prosecution - remains weak as of today.
In the long term, however, there is a need to restore authority and hope in a lawless Somalia. Ensuring border security implies both maritime and territorial forces.
What we need is an efficient and sizeable custom and police training forces. Knowledge-sharing should be at the core of nation building projects. In order to bring sustainable police and custom forces to the Somali territory, therefore, there is a need for human skills and finance.
Who pays? Who decides? Who performs?
Rather than a US and UN involvement, which already failed in the 1990s, new efforts should build on the involvement of two major victims of piracy: Middle East and African countries should be involved in a regional partnership and assist in training Somali custom and police forces.
The African Union is getting more political weight and has more involvement in regional issues. The achievements of its mission to Somalia, AMISOM, set in 2007, is an encouraging example. The search for finances is moreover a good reason to involve Arab States, through the League of Arab States, LAS, (of which Somalia is a member).
Finally, seizing the Somali pirates on the ground rather than on the sea would be easier to achieve. Securing 3000 kilometers of coastline is a great challenge. Customs officers and border guards should work together to secure areas around the Mogadishu region and progressively enlarge the state controlled zone. But contrary to Iraq or Afghanistan, the efforts should be concentrated on one region first, the coast.
Fighting piracy is far from romantic. It has more to do with addressing issues of extreme despair and poverty. Creating a state out of 20 years of Siad Barré's dictatorship and another 10 years of civil war is indeed a difficult task.
Yet only a long-term strategy can turn the threat of piracy into an opportunity for the international community to implement what ought to be its first priority: durable stability.
Juliet Dixon is a fourth year political science student at Science Po Lille in France, including one year at the WWU Münster in Germany. She will graduate with a MA in European Studies in 2010.
Related materials from the Atlantic Community:
- Abukar Arman: Piracy Requires a Concerted International Response
- Editorial Team: Piracy Revisited: How to Tackle the Growing Problem
- Editorial Team: What Strategy to Tacke the Problem? Vote Here
- Abukar Arman: Somali Peace Requires Constructive International Engagement
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May 7, 2009
Hannah Bloch-Wehba, University of Texas at Austin, (4)