UK debates arming ships

Britain is considering the implications of allowing merchant ships to carry arms in an effort to protect themselves against the escalating threat of international piracy.

Such a move would also curb the growing unregulated market of private contractors offering armed protection on board ships.
There are growing concerns over the failure of naval forces to deter the pirates. According to shipping minister Mike Penning, the increasing number of pirate attacks off the coast of Somalia has inspired the Dept for Transport to consider amending the current policy to recognise that engaging armed personnel is an option for UK-flagged ship owners to combat piracy.
There is also a lack of action in bringing the guilty to justice when they are caught. While there have been a few cases in Europe, the bulk of the burden has been carried by Kenya and the Seychelles, plus one high-profile case in Yemen when six Somali pirates were sentenced to death.

During the first quarter of this year, an estimated 117 ships were attacked by pirates in Somalia, with at least seven crew members killed and 338 seafarers held hostage. According t the Greenwich Maritime Institute, at any one time more than 700 seafarers are being held hostage by Somali pirates. The British Chamber of Shipping (BCS) plans to call for tougher sanctions, saying that instead of dishing out the ‘soft-glove‘ treatment, pirates should be shackled and brought to the UK for prosecution. And an official Danish government anti-piracy strategy, which advocates relaxing the rules under which ships can have armed guards on board, also suggests even tougher measures for the pirates, including the use of special forces and the bombing of pirate bases on land.

On the issue of unregulated private security companies offering protection for ships, John Dalby of the security company Marine Risk Management says that there are hundreds of people setting up shop, some of whom have never been aboard a ship before, let alone know how to defend it. But the private security firms justify their existence with the argument that the naval forces are unable to provide adequate protection in the pirate infested waters, which cover an area of almost three million square nautical miles.

Quelle: eyefortransport
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