The Panther Bay
Pirate Blog

As nation's across the globe continue to ramp up their interest and resources to fight pirates off the East Coast of Africa and western parts of the Indiana Ocean, the role of privately funded security needs a fresh look. I found this 2009 article from The Economist magazine quite useful in framing the debate. A sampling of the analysis:

Deterrence, or at least stopping attacks at the earliest stage, is always best. These are areas in which the private sector (both shipowners and their security advisers) must play a role. America has also encouraged small countries with large shipping registries such as Liberia, Panama, the Marshall Islands and the Bahamas to mandate prudent self-protection by vessels.

Already, the line between peaceful merchant ships and naval ones is blurring a little. These days, maritime-security providers operating off east Africa almost always make some use of weapons, says Didier Berra, a French army veteran who has worked for Secopex, a naval-security firm based in Carcassonne in France.

Draconian force is seldom necessary, adds Mr Berra. Attackers often give up when 12.7mm machineguns are fired into the water, creating a big splash. The head of another European security firm says many outfits sidestep bans on weapons in port by tossing them overboard. Yet a show of firepower is increasingly necessary because pirates are getting blasé about “non-lethal” defences like water hoses and sonic blasts, says David Schewitz, whose California-based company, RSB International, helps protect ships.

Navies are also starting to deploy seamen on merchant ships, something hitherto rare unless the cargo was military. The French navy, for example, has been sending sailors to protect the country’s tuna-fishing ships in waters around the Seychelles. Such assertiveness at least marginally reduces the opportunities for private firms; a few games really are zero sum.

The article also notes that poltiical stability and economic growth will be essential for reducing the allure of piracy. That may be true, but a lot can be done now to increase the penalties of engaging in piracy. And here is where private actions to defend vessels and people may be the most effective, even if it is only addressing a symptom of the larger problem.