This is another one of those ‘it sounds like it’s from the Onion’ stories that isn’t.
In Somalia’s main pirate lair of Haradheere, the sea gangs have set up a cooperative to fund their hijackings offshore, a sort of stock exchange meets criminal syndicate.
[…]
One wealthy former pirate named Mohammed took Reuters around the small facility and said it had proved to be an important way for the pirates to win support from the local community for their operations, despite the dangers involved. “Four months ago, during the monsoon rains, we decided to set up this stock exchange. We started with 15 ‘maritime companies’ and now we are hosting 72. Ten of them have so far been successful at hijacking,” Mohammed said. “The shares are open to all and everybody can take part, whether personally at sea or on land by providing cash, weapons or useful materials … we’ve made piracy a community activity.”
[…]
Piracy investor Sahra Ibrahim, a 22-year-old divorcee, was lined up with others waiting for her cut of a ransom pay-out after one of the gangs freed a Spanish tuna fishing vessel. “I am waiting for my share after I contributed a rocket-propelled grenade for the operation,” she said, adding that she got the weapon from her ex-husband in alimony. “I am really happy and lucky. I have made $75,000 in only 38 days since I joined the ‘company’.”
Cripes! An RPG is part of alimony payments. What a country!
Somalia’s newest FDI
This entire problem could be easily fixed with a single aircraft carrier and a UN (or unilateral US) resolution stating “Somalia is no longer allowed to operate boats of any kind.”
This seems like a great opportunity for Exxon, BP and Maersk. They should put a Maritime Academy right in Haradheere. This kids go 200 miles off shore in skiffs with used outboards. Seems like some pretty good nautical abilities to me. If you can’t beat them, employ them.
Well that’s the end of the Somali pirates. Any time a “for-profit” venture changes to a “community activity” it’s usually the end of the line.
Expect either a total collapse, or a violent bloodbath.
Isn’t this just another article about Goldman Sachs, BofA or ING?
Honestly… we need a few more Navy SEAL snipers to take care of the pirates in our own country.
I wonder who go the ticker symbol R.
What we need to do is replace the helos operating in the area of our destroyers in the area with Marine Cobras.
They need a diplomatic mission and French philosophy.
Oddly enough, this could be a winning strategy.
As long as they figure out to stay away from American ships and go for the wussies that pay…
Those aren’t Somali pirates in the accompanying picture. They’re Southeast Asians, possibly Malays from the Riau Archipelago.
“… we’ve made piracy a community activity” Can ACORN be far behind?
I think #3 (bdgbill) has the right idea. About time the UN did something useful.
Pedro: I said it’s time they did something useful.
Piracy is the only way we can protect our rich oceans from looters, as well as earn hot cash money! trully i become happier whenever i heard new captivity.. and its really success! we dnt care how the world feels about this, we jst keep thinking of our profits.. viva somali pirates! ahahahah
#16 – Believe me. I have worked for several agencies of the UN and know they are full of inefficiencies and deliberate waste. They spend far more money on themselves and their petty bureaucrats than they do on aid.
This is mind-blowing! Organizations like this tend to evolve in the direction of best income for least effort. I can see this evolving into a true navy, collecting “protection money” from shippers instead of having to actually capture ships and crews. Eventually, competition will lower the price to the level of insurance, and insured vessels will get safe passage — all in all a better situation than the one currently in force. After a while, this quasi-navy may even be able to run off the giant fishing vessels poaching and the tankers and other ships dumping pollution in their waters.
Could this end up being the beginning of a viable government for Somalia?