Somali Pirates-Spain’s stance

Lum YiBrandon Tan

Spain and Somali piratesSpanish tuna fishing vessel, Alakrana, was

seized on October 2 2009 by pirates off the coast of Somali

On 3 October, two pirates leaving the Alakrana were arrested by the Spanish warship CANARIAS.

On 15 November, the Alakrana was released after reportedly a $3.3mil ransom.

Spanish navy captured eight suspected pirates off the coast of Somalia on 25 April 2010.

Spain- Somali TiesNo direct ties between Spain and Somalia,

thus it is with much difficulty if we were to intervene directly in Somalia’s government.

However, being part of the European Union, we plan to use this as a channel for our actions on Somali Piracy.

Stance on PiracyStrongly againstCalls for Europe to take a tougher stance in

dealing with piracyRequests the multinational naval force to

block  the three main ports from which Somali pirates appear to be operating.

Stance on PiracyApproved a Spanish draft law against piracy

which calls for prison terms of up to 15 years for those found guilty of carrying out attacks on planes or ships.

Stance on PiracySpain and France plan to propose an

international conference on Somalia to help reclaim security and stability.

The conference aims to come up with a "complete" response to the unrest in Somalia beyond 'security and military level' and focus instead on a "political, security and civil" solution.

Military ActionsDeployment of 395 troops as part of a

European Union task force.A P-3 maritime surveillance plane with 70

troops at a French air base in Djibouti.Deployment of a frigate with a helicopter and

196 troops; and later a supply ship with a helicopter and

118 more troops.

Other actionsAuthorization for Spanish ships in these

waters to carry armed civilian security guards. 

Cannot station Marines on fishing boats as Spanish Law does not allow this

SolutionsDeployment

of more troops

Defense from Somali pirates

on Spanish ships or trawlers

Blockades on ports to

decrease pirate activities

Cost of such a deployment

could be high

Funding of pirates

Somali Diaspora mainly from Yemen and

Dubai

Call on UN to impose

restrictions on imports into

Somalia

SolutionsDirect attacks

on Somali pirates

Highly impossible

A policy of not attempting rescue operations and not

firing on pirates unless fired on

first.

Lest be accused of

crimes against humanity or war crimes

Helping Somali’s

government

Difficult

Spain has no ties with Somalia

However can use EU as a channel for

action

Sourceshttp://www.barcelonareporter.com/index.php?

/news/comments/basque_trawler_alakrana_and_its_crew_under_somali_pirate_control_for_a_seve/

http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/somalia-shipping.1e9

http://www.eunavfor.eu/2009/10/eu-navfor-spanish-warship-canarias-arrests-two-suspected-pirates/

http://www.speroforum.com/a/20630/Spain-confronts-Somali-piracy

http://www.euronews.net/2009/11/12/spain-calls-for-blockade-of-pirate-ports/

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/01/21/spain.piracy.taskforce/

http://www.expatica.com/es/news/spanish-news/Spain-approves-tough-new-law-against-piracy-_58092.html

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE63O1YF20100425?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+reuters/worldNews+(News+/+US+/+International)