Piracy on the high seas - Its impact on trade and business

For many people, the phrase maritime piracy evokes images of a one-eyed sailor drinking rum and singing obscene songs. For some younger people, piracy may bring to mind the picture of Hollywood actor Johnny Depp, wearing a headband in a scene from the film Pirates of the Caribbean.

However Maritime Piracy is not just an action movie. It is the practice of attacking and robbing ships at sea. The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea defines piracy as “illegal acts of violence or detention” committed on the high seas against ships or aircraft. Piracy is a serious problem and it poses a real threat not only to the safety of vessels and their crews, but also to the economies of affected countries.

Although the issue of piracy recently rather dropped out of the top headlines, the world’s oceans have certainly not become any safer. On the contrary, the level of risk remains high, especially around the coasts of Africa and in the Singapore Straits.  For example in the Horn of Africa, despite a strong presence of naval forces patrolling in the Gulf of Aden and the adjacent Indian Ocean; merchant navy vessels are regularly attacked and hijacked. Of 445 attacks reported globally in 2010, 219 were attributed to Somali pirates. 49 of these were successful hijacking. Yet the waters of Somalia are far from being the only piracy hotspot for International Shipping. Vessels also fall prey to attacks especially off the coast of Nigeria, Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh and in South China Sea.

Though the attacks may differ in location, method and impact, they all share a common trait which is they have become a problem of ‘International Politics’. There are 2 reasons:

1. Shipping routes form arteries of global economy accounting for over 80% of International trade.  So violent attacks here have the potential to cause real harm
2. Piracy touches directly on elementary interests of all trading nations. Security problems on land are increasingly linked to questions of maritime security in the global context.

The spectrum of options is broad and advise is offered to ship owners and masters in constantly being reviewed and Best Management practices guide compiled by IMO and the shipping industry. Measures adopted include registering vessels, planning the transit through the high risk areas around Somalia with national and international authorities that have forces deployed to the region, developing an internal emergency plan to provide an effective response. 

Since the west coast of India is also vulnerable to the long range activities of the Somali pirates, constant vigilance has been enforced.  This however does not prevent random acts of stealing on vessel at anchor which can be considered as piracy on a reduced scale. 

But piracy is not the only security threat at sea. Piracy has drawn attention to wider problems of maritime insecurity, such as trafficking and smuggling of humans, weapons and narcotics, and illegal and unregulated fishing activities. Hence, the attention currently being given to the fight against piracy could be used as a stepping stone by the international community to create sustainable institutions of maritime security. The Indian Government is particularly concerned about the transit of vessels along its coast especially after the Nov 2008 Mumbai terrorist attack where the terrorist landed in the city from the sea.

International institutions are crucial for counter-piracy efforts, but they require long-term and multinational commitment. The African Union has already declared that its objective is to implement the African Maritime Security Strategy by 2050. Among the strategy’s goals are to “ensure security and safety of maritime transportation systems,” and to “prevent hostile and criminal acts at sea, and to coordinate/harmonize the prosecution of the offenders.”

It is a long-term strategy, but without a doubt concerted action is needed now to stop piracy in West and South Africa before it deteriorates and spreads to other coastal areas.