Somalia Reminds the World of its Misery

Western politicians are struggling to figure out what to do about the surging tide of Somali piracy in the Gulf of Aden and off the Horn of Africa, a vast area through which 20,000 vessels and 25 per cent of the world’s oil pass annually. Last week, a gang of Somali teenagers with more nerve than brains challenged the might of the US Fifth Fleet by kidnapping the captain of the American container vessel, Maersk Alabama. They were shot dead in a still murky rescue operation by the US Navy. The US media reacted to the event with an orgy of flag waving and patriotic hoopla.
Somali pirates currently hold 15 merchant ships and 300 crewmen hostage. Piracy, goat herding, and growing the narcotic shrub, qat, are the only businesses in Somalia. Last year, Somalia’s pirates attacked 130 vessels and 
captured fifty. International commerce is in an uproar; marine insurance rates are soaring. Demands for action are mounting. France has taken the lead in fighting Somalia’s pirates. International naval patrols off the Horn of Africa are being increased, including warships from China, Japan, and India. But the area is vast; Somali buccaneers are determined and fearless. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton just laughably called for seizure of assets of Somali pirates. She seems unaware the Somali fisherman turned pirates do not own Swiss bank accounts or New York apartments. Somalia is one of the world’s poorest nations. 
The pirate’s biggest assets are old outboard motors that power their wooden fishing boats. The US, Britain and France are considering attacking pirate lairs on Somalia’s long coast, a traditional method of suppressing piracy. Action could include air strikes, naval bombardment, and commando raids. Mercenary firms expect a bonanza from renting armed guards for ships. Still, caution is well advised. Somali piracy is caused by the dire poverty and desperation of this failed state, which has endured chaos, civil war and famine since 1991. Somalia has split into three or four autonomous mini-states. A northern one, self-styled Puntland is the base of many Somali pirates. Ironically, many of Puntland’s pirate chiefs are in cahoots with Ethiopia, a key US ally. Ethiopia’s interest is to keep bad neighbour Somalia divided, and its constituent parts under western and Ethiopian influence. The UN says hunger, starvation and human misery in Somalia are even worse than in Sudan’s war-torn Darfur region. Somalia is now the world’s most urgent humanitarian crisis. A third of its 9.8 million people are reported to have become refugees. ..more..http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/opinion/2009/April/opinion_April95.xml&section=opinion&col=