Piracy

This article critically examines The Second Treatise of Government by drawing parallels between Locke’s social contract theory and piracy, focusing on the interconnection of freedom, property, and political authority. My work responds both to critical contract theory by scholars such as CB Macpherson, Carole Pateman and Charles Mills, and to the literature about piracy between 1695 and 1726, including work by Marcus Rediker and Peter Leeson. Whereas acts of theft by pirates are overt, colonial theft of land in the Americas is rendered invisible in Locke’s work through concepts such as 'terra nullius', as James Tully and Barbara Arneil have shown. This appropriation enables the relative equality between participants in the contract, both in the case of actual pirate crews, and amongst the individuals who establish civil society in Locke’s account. I also show how both Locke’s theory and the Articles of Agreement between pirates conceptualize the political subject as a non-employee, adult, male, and able-bodied, including the absence of dependence and care. Since democratic equality between participants is rooted in colonial dispossession, I suggest that Lockean contract theory is a philosophy of piracy.

Analysis of the phenomenon of piracy in Somalia that includes historical references, strategic considerations of naval warfare and the concept of "failed sea". The latter term has been incorporated into the maritime strategy being used by the Spanish Defence Minister as well as members of the Spanish Parliament. It has also been recognized as such by the Foreign Policy Magazine (May 2009) in its Spanish edition.

"This study reviews ship security assessment. The objectives are to explore the possibilities for quantifying and performing a more thorough ship security risk analysis than that described in the International Ship and Port Facility Security code and to evaluate to what extent this more detailed analysis increases ship security and facilitate the effective selection of risk control options.

The study focuses on Somali-based maritime piracy, using piracy on the Indian Ocean as a case study. Data are collected using questionnaires and interviews with civilian and military security experts who possess firsthand experience of piracy off the coast of Somalia. The data are collected specifically for this study and describe and quantify the threat’s capability, intent and likelihood of exploiting a ship’s vulnerability. Based on the collected description of the threat, the study analyzes and describes: probability of detection by pirates, probability of successful approach, and probability of successful boarding.

The performed work shows good agreement between calculated probabilities and frequencies in the cited incident reports. Also, the developed scenarios describe the most important influences on the analyzed areas. The research therefore shows that the proposed risk-based approach, which uses structurally collected and documented information on the threat, can increase ship security by assisting in selecting risk control options. The approach also allows for a better understanding of the causal relationship between threat and risk than that provided in today’s security analysis by ship owners, for example. This understanding is crucial to choosing effective and robust risk control options."

Parliamentary involvement remains a key tool for the democratic control of executive policies. This article explores the web of parliamentary involvement in decision-making on European Union (EU) military operations, using insights gained in an in-depth case study on the EU's anti-piracy mission Atalanta. We find that parliaments at all levels became involved only after key political decisions had already been made. At the member state level, we find highly uneven involvement with only some parliaments being very well informed and closely monitoring, if not influencing government policy. The European Parliament became active only after the launch of the mission but then scrutinised it intensely, profiting (in contrast to national parliaments) from its access to top military officials and key decision-makers. Finally, transnational parliamentary assemblies as well as more informal networks provided opportunities to transmit information across the boundaries of individual parliaments and party-groups thus potentially enhancing the ability of parliamentarians to scrutinise government policies.

Dans cette affaire, le gestionnaire d’un forum de discussion sur internet était poursuivi en justice en raison de la présence de messages prétendument calomnieux ou diffamatoires sur son forum. Nous commenterons cette décision en trois temps. La première question examinée par le juge portait sur la possibilité pour le gestionnaire d’invoquer les exonérations légales de responsabilité, alors qu’il s’agissait d’un forum gratuit. Nous verrons que le jugement n’a sans doute pas fait une application correcte de la notion de « service » telle que la définit le droit communautaire. Le juge devait ensuite décider de la qualification des activités d’un gestionnaire d’un forum de discussion : s’agit-il d’activités d’hébergement, de simple transport ou bien d’édition ? Enfin, il revenait au magistrat de trancher la  controverse relative à l’appréciation de la réaction du gestionnaire du forum. A partir de quel moment pouvait-on considérer que celui-ci avait connaissance du caractère prétendument illicite des messages litigieux ? Pouvait-il, comme il le fit, demander des précisions au plaignant ou devait-il immédiatement retirer tous les messages potentiellement illicites de son forum ? Cette question nous permet de revenir sur les risques que présente, au regard de la liberté d’expression, l’état actuel d’un régime légal qui semble permettre à un plaignant de contraindre le gestionnaire d’un forum à supprimer des messages sans le moindre contrôle judiciaire.

"Piracy is posing an immense threat to the security of global shipping lanes. The State regulatory regime has been unable to quell piracy due to shortcomings of the UNCLOS definition of piracy and jurisdictional problems, particularly in relation to the status of Somalia as a failed State. As the size of the ransoms has increased so too has the sophistication of these criminal gangs who operate over millions of square kilometres in the open seas.
The realm of merchant shipping has an intensely transnational context and so maritime law has evolved over hundreds of years to develop customs and usage to minimise and control the multiplicity of risks that accompany the shipping of goods over long distances. The lack of standard contract terms for the carriage of armed guards has complicated risk assessment for insurers. As well, guards have been operating in a legal vacuum as the High Seas are a global commons beyond the jurisdiction of States.
A norm is transnational if is adopted by a variety of State and non-state actors, (individuals, NGOs, IGOs and companies), it arises from custom and usage, it is rational and economically efficient and when the parties find an equilibrium to deal with a common problem. The norm is soft law if it lacks obligation. However, transnational commercial norms are usually enforced through contracts and arbitral tribunals. BIMCO is a NGO representing multiple shipping interests and whose hallmark is the production of standard contracts to harmonise maritime practice that are fair to all parties, for example it‟s pro formas for charter
parties and bills of lading. It has produced a new GUARDCON contract after wide consultation to regulate the carriage of private security teams and the use of lethal force. This satisfies the criteria of a transnational commercial norm."

The current strategy of the International Community to deal with Somali piracy runs the risk of failing. By analyzing the current attempts in countering piracy the authors come to the conclusion that one of the fundamental strategic problems is the present narrow-minded focus on deterrence and containment. Alternative (eventually even unconventional) considerations are necessary to complement and enhance strategic thinking in this regard. To understand piracy as a challenge of peacebuilding offers such a possibility to rethink the current strategic perspective and to develop a more comprehensive strategy for countering piracy. In developing and exploring five alternative policy scenarios the authors show how a peacebuilding perspective might enhance and supplement present strategic thinking. By arguing to understand piracy as a ‘wicked problem’ they illustrate the key elements of pursuing sustainability and efficacy in dealing with Somali piracy

This paper traces the intersecting trajectories of policy and projection since September 11.  I explore America’s engagement in eastern Africa, the actions of regional allies, and media coverage of terrorism in the region as examples of the confluence of counterterrorism policies, inter-state relations, and mythologies of al Qaeda.  The search for Fazul Abdullah Muhammad and his closest associates provides a unique vehicle to track evolving U.S. counterterrorism strategies in Africa, including security aid, extraordinary rendition, and military intervention.  At the same time, speculation about Fazul offers a window on popular perceptions of a war without boundaries, perceptions that have encouraged a disproportionate response to al Qaeda.  To contextualize the multiple uses of Fazul I begin with a reflection on two tropes—one official, one popular—that have framed American counterterrorist initiatives in and beyond East Africa: war and specters.  I then address the development of the Fazul mythos and its convergence with American foreign policy as well as partner nations’ counterterrorism efforts.  More precisely, I explore perceptions of Fazul as a ‘master-terrorist’, attempts to capture or kill him, and his rhetorical utility as a primary face of terrorism in the region.  I conclude by considering the circumstances of Fazul’s death and its lessons for American counterterrorism in eastern Africa.

"The threat of piracy to commercial shipping is a concern for the protection and safeguarding of human lives, property and environment. Therefore, ships under piracy threat should follow security measures suggested by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somali. It is, therefore, important to choose the proper security measures for the right situation.

This study presents a simulation model that can be used for probabilistic risk assessments regarding the operation of commercial ships. This investigation specifically studies the pirate approach phase and quantifies the effect of ship speed and effective lookout. The purpose of introducing probabilistic risk assessment into the analysis of pirate attacks is to meet safety goals more effectively through a well-balanced combination of proactive and reactive measures whilst keeping focus on the intended over all purpose of the particular ship.

The study presents collected and documented knowledge regarding pirate capability, intention and likelihood to perform attacks. The knowledge is collected from experts with experience from the situation off the Horn of Africa. The collected information is input to an influence analysis that identifies the network of influences that govern the skiff approach. The simulation model describes piracy characteristics and decision making on the threatened ship, the characteristics and countermeasures of the ship under attack, as well as weather.

Based on a comparison with available statistics the overall conclusion of the work is that the threat analysis and the simulation model can quantify and explain how the studied risk control options affect the probability of a successful approach. The result therefore exemplifies how a quantified ship security analysis can support the recommendations in industry guidelines and also enable recommendations that to a greater extent can facilitate an educated decision by the ship operators."

Stealing of provisioned food items by adult conspecifics (intraspecific kleptoparasitism or piracy) is common among birds, can reduce breeding success and may be one disadvantage of colonial breeding. Theft by chicks from neighbouring broods has rarely been quantified but may have similar reproductive consequences and the factors that influence it require further study. We took advantage of unusually diverse weather during the critical early stages of growth to elucidate the factors driving kleptoparasitic behavior of Common Tern Sterna hirundo chicks. Kleptoparasitism was restricted to misty days when large chicks were fed much smaller fish than on other days, inducing them to steal from neighbouring broods with young chicks. Our study indicates that kleptoparasitism by chicks could be a way to overcome shortfalls in parental provisioning, and may be a net cost of colonial breeding. Our results both provide evidence of a potential mechanism behind food-stealing by chicks and suggest hypotheses for future testing.

""The ongoing problem of digital file sharing technology evolving at a speed far greater than the law can keep up with is demonstrable with the cases against Napster and Grokster seeing measures upheld against the producers of centralised and decentralised peer-to-peer networks towards the ends of their natural useful lives. As file sharers and, with them, copyright infringers, move onto more efficient networks such as BitTorrent, the story is repeated but with the new problem of the client software being open source.

This has led to avenues alternative to litigating against makers of peer-to-peer network clients being explored. Although it is a long established principle that criminal sanctions can be levied against copyright infringers who operate in the course of a business, ostensibly making money from the labours of others without authorisation, the industries in their fervour to dissuade the sharing of infringing files have inadvertently raised the question of what constitutes an alternative type of infringer, namely one who harms the copyright holder without benefiting from financial gain themselves.

This type of file sharer is described in the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 as a person who distributes otherwise than in the course of a business to such an extent as to affect prejudicially the owner of the copyright. Unfortunately, the parameters of this test of prejudicial effect is not defined in the Act, has not been addressed by the judiciary and has left commentators submitting conflicting and uncertain views as to where the boundary of this test lies.

This test is examined in the Hong Kong case of HKSAR v. Chan Nai-Ming, which is notable for being the first case in the world where a user of BitTorrent has been criminally prosecuted and given a custodial sentence. This paper examines the case in the context of its alternative approach to curbing a peer-to-peer network that is quite distinct from the likes of Kazaa, and considers the stance taken in light of the test of prejudicial affect which is echoed in the Hong Kong Copyright Ordinance 1997.

With reference to alternative perspectives on the test, including proposals for reform from the Hong Kong government itself, it is argued that the highly strict and surprisingly low level at which the test for prejudicial affect is set is counter-intuitive to the goals of curbing the problems piracy poses. The influence this ruling could have upon a UK interpretation of the test after the final appeal has been heard is considered, and it is concluded that the ongoing battle between file sharers and their opponents has led to the loss of sight of the true goal of regulation: the protection of copyright holders from suffering de facto harm that is at least above a relatively negligible standard.""