NAIROBI, Kenya – Private security guards shot and killed a Somali pirate during an attack on a merchant ship off the coast of East Africa in what is believed to be the first such killing by armed contractors, the EU Naval Force spokesman said Wednesday.
The death comes amid fears that increasingly aggressive pirates and the growing use of armed private security contractors onboard vessels could fuel increased violence on the high seas. The handling of the case may have legal implications beyond the individuals involved in Tuesday’s shooting.
Let’s parse that a little.
The death comes amid fears that increasingly aggressive pirates and the growing use of armed private security contractors onboard vessels could fuel increased violence on the high seas.
Er, excuse me. The increased violence is already there, thank you to the pirates.
The contractors are there (or should be there) to kill the fucking pirates dead, dead, dead. Which, under the “pour encourager les autres” rule, would seem to me to foster decreased violence on the high seas.
But, fuck it, it’s an AP article, big surprise they can’t get that straight.
Oh, and:
Experts say piracy is just one symptom of the general collapse of law and order in the failed state of Somalia, which has not had a functioning government in 19 years. They say attacks on shipping will continue as long as there is no central government capable of taking on the well-armed and well-paid pirate gangs.
Or until US warships take out Mogadishu and make the destruction of Copenhagen look like a picnic. As long as the pirates have a place to land, fuel, and refresh, they’ll continue to come out and menace shipping. Take out that place and they have nowhere to run.
My favorite thing in the article was the UN bureaucrat, whining about who these private security firms are accountable to.
They’re held accountable by their paying customers, the ship owners. If you don’t want to get shot by private security contractors in international waters, don’t approach ships in international waters.