From Somali Coast to Southeast Asian Waters:
Shifting Hotspots of Piracy
A serious and bloody business
Piracy was and still is a burning issue
for maritime communication. The
issue of maintaining safety and
security of shipping and sea lines of
communication (SLOC) are major
concerns of ensuring maritime security
by states. The advent of globalisation
has made it even more indispensible
for states to rely on sea-borne trade
for international business. It is
estimated that 80 percent of all world
trade, or about 5.7 billion tons of
cargo, is transported by sea. Until
recently Indian Ocean has become the
theater of maritime power playground.
Ensuring the steady flow of energy
from the Persian Gulf region to most
of the countries of South, Southeast
and East Asian nations depend on the
security of the sea lanes of Indian
Ocean. Nations with strong navies
prowl these waters with advanced
ships to safeguard their maritime
interest, whereas non-state actors
have shown tremendous interest to
exploit the opportunity of intercepting
the commercial ships for ransom. As
against the popular portrayal of
Pirates of Caribbean movie of pirates
being lawless but harmless by heart,
piracy is still, as The Economist put it
in 1999, “a serious and bloody
business.”
Page
Civilization around the world
flourished through the sea. Voyages
made by brave adventurous sailors
made the world known to its people.
It is the communication through seas
that enabled the movement of goods,
culture, raw materials, and above all
knowledge that shaped the future of
mankind. But as Thomas Hobbs
enunciated „humans are self-interested
being‟, seeking self-interest in the
oceanic domain had been a part of
history over 2000 years ago. Piracy
has been a feature of human
civilization that dates back to ancient
Greece. Piracy usually means the act
of robbing the ships, goods, and often
capturing the ship itself for the
purpose of satisfying even broader
purposes. As actor pirates are those
who are involved in the acts of piracy
of others ship and robbing those ships
for their interest.
15
Ishtiaque Alam*