Let’s boot the freebooters

It is said that those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. We are currently reliving a problem that the US Marine Corps solved back in 1804, when Muslim pirates demanded extortion monies from American ships as they sailed past North Africa.

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At first Americans attempted to solve the problem through peaceful means, allocating money as far back as 1784 to pay off the so-called Barbary Pirates of Algiers, Morocco, Tripoli and Tunis. In that year Thomas Jefferson, who was serving as Ambassador to France approached Tripoli’s envoy to London, Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja to ask if there was some accommodation that could be reached between the US and the Barbary States. The envoy’s reply was unequivocal and telling: It was written in their Koran, that all nations which had not acknowledged the Prophet were sinners, whom it was the right and duty of the faithful to plunder and enslave; and that every Muslim who was slain in this warfare was sure to go to paradise. When Jefferson became President in 1801, the Barbary States demanded tribute in the amount of $225,000 per year, an amount the newly formed government would not be able to pay out of its $10 million annual revenue. As a result Jefferson convinced the congress that the best way to solve the problem permanently was to send naval vessels to the Barbary States to protect American interests. This resulted in America’s first foreign war and established the fledgling nation as a force to be reckoned with. Total losses suffered by the Barbary States were 800 dead, 1200 wounded, plus the loss of numerous ships versus America’s casualties, which were a total of 35 killed and 64 wounded. Problem solved. Now fast-forward some 200 years and we find ourselves having similar problems with Muslim pirates from yet another African state. Like they did in the late 1700s and early 1800s many nations of the world are sending ransom money to the pirates in exchange for release of captured ships and their crews and cargo. Last year alone the total amount of ransoms paid exceeded $80 million, as nations like Saudi Arabia and Germany coughed up cash to free ships flying their flags being held hostage by Somali pirates. Some countries have halfheartedly sent naval ships to that area of the Indian Ocean in hopes of being able to dissuade the pirates. The French, who were able to rescue a number of their ships, enjoyed the most success up to now. Recently a Canadian Sea King helicopter also managed to dissuade a group of Somali pirates by displaying a banner attached to the aircraft’s machine gun that displayed the word “STOP” in Somali. The dramatic rescue of Capt. Richard Phillips by US Navy SEALs as he was held hostage by Somali pirates should be the beginning of the end of the piracy problem plaguing the Indian Ocean. That is if the world reacts in any other way but the usual politically correct “Oh, God, Why do they hate us so.” hysteria. Vice Admiral Gortney, head of the Navy’s Fifth Fleet warned that the act of rescuing Capt. Phillips would likely “exacerbate violence in this part of the world. No question about it.” He is probably right, as pirate leader Abdi Garrad has now vowed to target Americans for retribution. Garrad understands the West’s inherent squeamishness when it comes to defending itself. But given that the situation off the coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden will only worsen if action is not taken, the West has little choice but to defend itself. Rather than tying flags to a helicopter’s machine gun that urge pirates to stop, it might be more prudent to just blow the alleged pirates out of the water as a matter of policy. It would not take too many incidents of pirates being consigned to the deep, blue sea before those plying that profession would seek other lines of work due to the occupational hazards. In addition to adding a bellicose military presence to the waters off Somalia, merchant ships might also be well advised to retain the services of companies such as Blackwater Worldwide to provide armed security against the Somali pirates. While this step would cost substantially less than having an entire navy patrol the waters, it would also serve to severely discourage high seas high jinx by Somali Pirates. Paying ransom is no longer an option, as one is given to wonder how much of that $80 million the Muslim pirates collected last year is now in the hands of terrorists wishing to harm the West. Sending the US Marines to clean up this problem the way they did on the shores of Tripoli 200 years ago is still the most effective way of solving the problem.