Contemporary Problem Of Piracy And Its Governance

As an ancient phenomenon, piracy has regained its vitality since the end of the Cold War. It is the similarities and differences between modern pirates and ancient ones on their dressing, target, way of boarding, arms, nature and location that make the essence of contemporary piracy. Piracy off the coast of Somalia, which has become rampant ever since 2008, is currently leading the general trend of global piracy activities, considering the evolution of its success rate, weaponry, nature and scope of the activities.Somali pirates share the commonalities as well as differences with contemporary pirates in general. The differences lie in the mode of operation, the relationship with the home country and the possibility of exterior intervention. By analyzing the background and root of Somali pirates, the author concludes with three characteristics of Somali Piracy, namely the systematicness of operation (People-Weaponry-Funding Triangle), the parasitism on a "failed-state", and the legitimacy of international interference.Piracy being a "local-globalized issue" in nature, the author elucidates the necessity of a "multi actor and multi layer" pattern of governance, through comparison of various modes of governance. The current structure of governance is composed of "three columns":naval escort, deterring and capturing pirates by the deployment of multinational naval forces; judicial cooperation, repatriating and prosecuting captured pirates; and regional capacity building, cutting off the "root" of piracy through general coordination forum, regional anti-piracy regime and public diplomacy towards local Somalis, with participation of multi-national governments, Somali local government and clans, NGOs and media groups.Nevertheless, effects have been very limited thus far, despite the multiple efforts in combating pirates. Based on the three dimensions of governance, the article continues to point out that it is the arbitrary containment of piracy, unwillingness to devote money and effort, and reckless fostering of puppet government that contribute to the predicament of the situation. Through reexamining the two factors(namely, operational and fundamental)leading to the success of pirates and the multiple efforts the international community has endeavored, the original aim of governance--"to address both its symptoms and root causes" is found merely achieved, thus causing the limited effects. The author ends the thesis by putting forward six recommendations based on the above mentioned limitations, which hopefully will be conductive to combating piracy in a more effective manner.