Stopping Sea Piracy
Murder, robbery, sabotage, kidnapping and seizure of items or ships are acts included in the modern definition of piracy. These acts of piracy and armed robbery, done by private parties who have no connection to a certain army, against ships are of tremendous concern to IMO, the world and to shipping in general.
As known, pirates have been around as long as people have used the oceans as trade routes. The earliest documented instance instances of piracy are the exploits of the Sea Peoples who threatened the Mediterranean and Aegean in the 13th century B.C. As time passes, the terror acts of pirates are becoming more powerful, more dangerous, more violent and more severe. Not only are these sea pirates gaining power, they are also increasing the amount of supplies and equipment they have. The causes of piracy differentiate among pirate groups. Some seize merchant ships in order to get their valuable cargo, while some still follow a practice from the 17th century- pirates seize ships in order to weaken their rivals. These pirates often tend to hold captive those on the ship they hijacked, allowing them to exhaust the governments and get anything they wish for.
There have been a growing number of pirate attacks in recent times. Kidnappings in particular have increased dramatically and the attacks happen in the world's ocean almost daily. This clarifies the reason for the world's great concern on the issue. The urgency of this issue did get some wheels moving and much effort has been put in. Four resolutions have been passes, NATO and the European Union are escorting food vessels, the United States with the help of 28 international partners formed the Contact Group in January 2009 and the U.S Navy established a joint task force in order to guard the waters.
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