Pakistan recently sent one of its main battleships, the PNS Badar, to join Task Force 151, operating in the Gulf of Aden to combat the rising threat of Somalian piracy. Various groups of sea pirates originating from Somalia have been hijacking cargo ships in the Gulf of Aden, a narrow strip of water at the mouth of the Red Sea between the coasts of Somalia and Yemen in northeast Africa. The hijackers demand huge sums of money as ransom for the crew and cargo from the ship's owners.
On October 7, 2008, the United Nations Security Council adopted resolution 1838, calling on nations with vessels in the area to apply military force to repress the acts of piracy.
In that year, the total number of such attacks numbered 130, with 50 successful hijackings, raking in approximately $100 million in ransom money. Surprisingly, the incidence of deaths in these hijackings has been quite low - unlike the African militant groups which often leave a trail of blood in their wake.
The pirates appear to be well-organized and do not like to be embroiled in lengthy operations. Regardless of the value of their cargo, their objective always is to extract maximum hard cash. They follow their criminal code religiously - do not kill a hostage unless ordered or necessary for the operation to succeed.
The commanders of Task Force 151, which was created in December 2008 by the European Union to protect its trade ships plying the Indian Ocean, say there has been an improvement in their handling of the piracy menace since the number of hijackings has dropped.
This Task Force comprises a helicopter carrier, a supply ship, a Ruby class nuclear submarine, two mine sweepers and six frigates. A Maritime Patrol Aircraft also operates out of Djibouti. However, with all this military power at its command, the Task Force has still not been completely successful in eliminating the piracy menace. This is because the modern-day buccaneers operate quite cleverly. They use fast moving skiffs, attached to larger mother ships, generally used by Somali fishermen and small traders travelling between the Somali coast and the nearby coast of Yemen. Even in this era of hi-tech technology, it is not easy to monitor 500 square miles of transit channels. Helicopters and aircraft patrolling the area face quite a tough task spotting the vessels and deciding whether the skiff is civilian or pirate. An ordinary skiff can be easily modified to accommodate armed men hiding from sight. As such, the only way for the Taskforce personnel is to board the skiffs to capture the pirates.
The very sight of a Sea King helicopter discourages an attack by the pirates. Vice Admiral Gerard Valin, in charge of the French forces in the Indian Ocean theatre, while visiting Pakistan earlier this year said that in three months since the Task Force had taken to sea, they had arrested 57 pirates and foiled many other attacks.
The pirates are now changing tactics by moving out of the heavily patrolled Gulf of Aden and are moving southwards where patrolling is sparse. There are reports they are now targeting ships coming out of the Mozambique Channel, an area of the Indian Ocean further south between the south-eastern African coast and Madagascar. The Task Force may now need to re-configure its strategy to combat the threat.
Perhaps this is why countries like Pakistan have been asked for assistance. As part of an older international coalition of naval forces operating in the Middle East to counter sea crimes such as human trafficking, smuggling, anti-narcotics and supporting the war against terror, Pakistan has sent ships and has twice held command of the Task Force. However, its primary role until recently was offering ports as refuelling, restocking and rearming points.
Since 2005, many international organizations, including the International Maritime Organization and the World Food Programme, have expressed concern over the rise in acts of piracy in this part of the Indian Ocean. Piracy has contributed to an increase in shipping costs and impeded the delivery of food aid shipments.
The rise of the menace in the Indian Ocean offers an interesting perspective on Somalia. During the Siad Barre regime, the country received aid from many western countries to develop its fishing industry. After Barre's fall, the income from fishing decreased due to the civil war in the country. There was no coast guard either to protect against trawlers from other countries illegally fishing in Somali waters. This led to the erosion of the fish stock. Local fishermen started to band together to protect the resource. Soon they discovered that piracy was an easier way to make money. The clan-based organization of Somali society, lack of a central government and the country's strategic location at the Horn of Africa, contributed to a large extent to the growth of piracy.
Precise data on the current economic situation in Somalia is scarce but with an estimated per capita GDP of $600 per year, it remains one of the world's poorest countries. The people's precarious economic conditions and the lucrative success of many hijacking operations drew a number of young men towards piracy when they saw pirates acquiring enormous wealth and strength and becoming part of the local social and economic elite.
A Somalian told the BBC, "They have money; they have power and they are getting stronger by the day. They wed the most beautiful girls; they are building big houses; they have new cars; new guns."
Both negative and positive effects have been observed of the pirates' economic success. Local people complain that the presence of so many armed men makes them feel insecure, and their free spending ways cause wild fluctuations in the local exchange rate. Others fault them for excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages and drugs.
At the same time, many people appreciate the rejuvenating effect that the pirates' on-shore spending has had on their impoverished towns. It has often provided jobs and opportunity when there were none. Entire hamlets have transformed into veritable boomtowns, with local shop owners and other residents using their gains to purchase items such as generators - "allowing full days of electricity, once an unimaginable luxury."
The pirates are said to get most of their weapons from Yemen, but a significant amount comes from Mogadishu, Somalia's capital. The ransom money is paid to them in large denomination US dollar notes and delivered to them in sacks dropped from helicopters or cased in waterproof suitcases and loaded onto tiny skiffs. Ransom money has also been delivered to the pirates via parachute, as happened in January 2009 when an orange container with $3 million cash inside it was dropped onto the deck of the supertanker MV Sirius Star to secure the release of ship and crew.
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