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Piracy

Introduction

Piracy is an Act of criminal violence or armed robbery at sea. Piracy is an international problem that disrupts global maritime trade and endangers the safety and security of crewmen and ship owners (Konstam, 2008, pp.1).

Background

An International Legal Framework Governing the Safety of Maritime Navigation, Piracy is an international crime that falls under every state's jurisdiction under customary international law (Konstam, 2008, pp.15). International Legal Framework Governing the Safety of Maritime Navigation Piracy is an international crime that falls under every state's jurisdiction under customary international law (Geiss et.al, 2011, pp.58).

Under United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea arts(UNCLOS, there are four essential elements to the definition of piracy: 1) an illegal act involving violence, detention, or depredation 2) committed for private ends 3) on the high seas 4) involving at least two ships. UNCLOS also reaffirms the idea of universal jurisdiction because it gives every state jurisdiction to seize and prosecute pirates according to that state's domestic laws (Geiss et.al, 2011, pp.52).

The convention also expands the UNCLOS definition of piracy because it applies to any ship navigating to, through, or from the territorial seas (Kraska et.al, 2011, pp.87).

Universal jurisdiction endows every state with the right to prosecute and punish piracy regardless of where the attack occurs. Because of universal jurisdiction, each state has the responsibility to prosecute pirates under its own domestic laws irrespective of a pirate's original nationality, the registry of the ship, or the destination of the cargo (Kraska et.al, 2011, pp.65).

History

Pirates were a serious problem for societies that relied on maritime trade. Piracy dates back more than 3,000 years; in 100 AD, Plutarch described pirates as men who unlawfully attacked both ships and coastal cities.

In ancient times, accounts show that piracy affected Greek merchants; the tyrant Polecats, for example, established a fleet of 100 vessels that plundered ships in the Mediterranean. By far the most famous and well-documented acts of piracy occurred in what is termed the 'Golden Age', the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries.

In this period, Barbary pirates operating off the coast of North Africa plundered vessels in the Mediterranean, buccaneers (roving adventurers operating against the vessels of particular nations) carried out daring attacks, and privateers (vessels given special commissions to attack ships of enemy nations) captured vessels on behalf of their governments. This was also the era of famous pirate captains such as Blackbeard, Captain Kidd and 'Bloody' Morgan, who's mythologized exploits provided swashbuckling tales of adventure and buried treasure that inspired authors to create popular pirate characters such as Long John Silver(Konstam, 2008, pp.7).

Piracy in the Caribbean Sea was also a major problem, and between 1815 and 1822 an estimated 3000 ships were captured by pirates (Konstam, 2008, pp.10).

Twenty-First Century and Piracy

In recent years, the study of the maritime sphere has increasingly highlighted the pervasiveness of piracy across different regions and over time.

The twenty-first century unfolds, the world again confronts piracy. Piracy continues to this day, particularly off the Horn of Africa. To any nation that relies to some degree on the oceans as a method of transportation for ...