Hostages Taken off Somalia

[SabreKai]

Just found this on UK Times Online; They are not doing well physically. Both are afraid that they will be dead soon unless someone does something.


We're getting desperate, say kidnapped British couple - Times Online


Meanwhile no one does anything.


Sabre

[Stillraining]

Unfortunately what is being done is the right decision in regards to not paying the ransom... I would be singing a different tune if it were me or my loved ones.... but...the right thing to do would be to ignore me.

The only way to stop this is prove there is no money in it...Freedom has never been free...and we may all one day have to stand and sacrifice something.

I pray the pirates come to their senses and just let them go..realizing their mistake attacking privet citizens of the world like this.

FWIW... Im all for spending 10 times the money for a rescue by force and selective eradication...good men will die..yes they will..... maybe even the chandlers...but freedom isint free...and it cant be alowed to be held for ransom...if your against people dieing ..then whats being done is the right thing to do.

This was hard for me to post...I felt it needed said.

[rover88]

It saddens me to agree with Stillraining and my tune would be different as well if they were my parents or friends.

However, ransoms clearly exacerbate the scourge of piracy and the problem will continue to grow and spread until decisive action is taken.

It clearly speaks to the unsophisticated nature of these thugs to hold an elderly couple. Greek ships are one thing, but killing these folks is only going to bring the wrath of the civilized world down on their heads.

Lets hope that British SBS get's their act together and the next raid is successful and brings these folks home one way or another.

[Dale]

It sucks, but I have to agree with stillraining & rover88.

My prayers go out to the Chandler's for a positive result that doesn't encourage others to be put in their place.

[bellefonte]

is it just me? When i map the seychelles and zoom out, the first land I see is Somalia. Scary and I would never sail there. In fact, until this issue is fixed, from the south eastern tip of Africa, if you go north, arent you taking some serious risk??

[bastonjock]

i to agree with still raining,if it was my family i would be creating as much hell as possible in order to secure their release.My govenment must not pay any ransom to the pirates,to pay these guys would only start an open season on the ordinary sailor,if the pirates are considering sailing out as far as the Indian ocean,then what next?
The freedom of the high seas would be lost,how long before criminal gangs of all continents start to kidnap sailors to ransom to their governments?

The best route is to show that there is no proffitt in grabbing someone off of their hard earned and paid for boat.

If the RN had been in a position to shoot these guys without endangering the hostages then they would have as they did some months ago when our marines wasted half a dozen or so pirates.

[Laidback]

Latest, Yachtsman Chandler feared going Blind Yacht Briton held by Somali pirates 'could become blind in weeks' after catching severe eye infection | Mail Online

[Blue Stocking]

Like many of you, I am sure, this event makes me feel very sad. But man's inhumanity to man, is nothing new.
By the minute, thousands of innocent people are dying at the hands of warring factions whose motives are beyond our comprehension.
Everywhere in the "first world nations", many people are torn between more and more government thinking for them, and taking personal responsibility for one's own welfare.
The financial advantages gained by us fortunate ones in the last two decades, have allowed us to become independantly adventurous.
But this spirit, and personal choice, is no guarantee that we will be safe in where we choose to go.
SO--with the deepest respect to the family, and knowing beforehand what the Gov. policy is, whose problem is this?

[estarzinger]

Originally Posted by Blue Stocking

with the deepest respect to the family, and knowing beforehand what the Gov. policy is, whose problem is this?

With deepest sadness for the family, I agree with the general 'don't pay the ransom' principle.

However, I DO NOT think that means the government should not do anything, and I DO NOT think this is a 'cruiser problem'. This is a very serious completely out of control international criminal problem. And if it is not solved it could easily spread far and wide as other poor fishermen see how easy the pickings are. It is a government/UN responsibility to keep the internation sea lanes clear and free and 'safe' from pirates.

It needs a multiprog governmental action program - from surgical SBS rescue missions, to a 'Q boat' program to 'UN/IMF style nation building'. But unfortunately (but with some cause given the Mogadishu fiasco) no government seems to want to touch any of it with even a barge pole. They don't want these people in their courts or their prisons and they don't want to put their military or aid workers on Somali soil.

[barnakiel]

The 'do not pay' principle would be fine, but since it has been broken so many times the bandits know we will pay after all. Why have the British sailors suffer more than necessary?

I think whatever it takes to free them, let's do it. Then kill the bandits and bomb the country that supports them. Take their oil, take their land and build hotels and marinas there.

I know it sounds harsh, but why should we respect nations which are the nest of such unfriendly practices? What have we done to them? Are we not sending humanitarian help to such places? Are we? Maybe we should stop.

b.

[shibbershabber]

There are so many angles to this whole piracy thing...

When a major shipping company is involved... the ransom is paid. When a private citizen is captured, its their problem.

The horn of Africa is a wasteland because of the first world. The area has been left behind in major ways. It was a playground for proxy wars between us and the USSR, which pretty much ground development to a halt. the only aid we ever sent in was food aid. When the cold war ended, the civil wars raged. These people have never known peace. The only living they have ever made is fishing. But then they were deprived of that by commercial over-fishing by foreigners, pollution of all sorts is dumped in the area without any recourse because the central governments are too weak to handle internal insecurity, let alone stand up to western corporate powers. theyve seen their livelihoods lost, making piracy very attractive.

So that being said, how long has this been going on? How many nations are supposed to be patrolling the area? China, Russia, USA, EU... why is this still happening? It seems like they are letting it happen, letting it increase... why? I dont know. Im sure the area is the next hot destination for NATO, in the name if islamic extremism of course. Just like we let Afghanistan waste away after the Soviets pulled out, and look at us now. We dropped the ball on the African horn region a while back too, its only natural that we will return with a military presense soon. Just look at Yemen!

[Butler]

I agree with shibbershabber on many points. I don't know how the industrialised nations could have helped stem the tragic loss of Somalia's fishing due to a weak government's inability to stop the greedy, slash and burn style "raiding" by other country's highly mechanized large scale fishing fleets and the wrongful dumping of radioactive waste within those grounds. All of this provides another dimension to the whole story. I would like to think that there would be some sort of fight if the same thing happened off the shores of Southern California and our government was unable or unwilling to stop it.
I don't understand the continuation of a faulty and inequitably applied policy of not meeting demands.
It's time to free the captured individuals however we can.
In the mean time the right to recreate securely in those waters obviously takes a back seat to finding a lasting solution to a many faceted problem.

[cat man do]

Another update

Last Updated: Feb 26, 2010 - 2:13:18 AM
SOMALIA
Somalia: Pirates demand to paid expense for British couple
26 Feb 26, 2010 - 2:10:32 AM

Somali pirates holding British couple Paul and Rachel Chandler hostage are only demanding to be paid expenses.

According to their spokesman, the couple is in dire need of medication but could only be freed when the captors receive money to their expenses.

“We can’t free the couple because we incurred a lot of expense while holding them, we want to be paid back,” said a spokesman who requested not to be named.

He however expressed fear that the health situation of Mrs Chandler has deteriorated and wants urgent medical assistance.

“Mrs Chandler health condition has deteriorated due to malnutrition. She can’t even walk for a minute. She needs urgent medication,” he claimed.

The couple, Paul Chandler and his wife Rachel, was vacationing in the Indian Ocean in the middle of the piracy peak season, when their 38-foot yacht, Lynn Rival, came under pirate attack in October 23. Their empty yacht was later located in the international waters off Somalia.

Their captors have threatened to kill the couple if their demands for $7m (£4.4m) are not met.

Somalis, especially those in the UK have been in the fore front to campaign for the release of the couple.

GAROWE ONLINE

Garowe Online - Home

[anjou]

Gosh, who would have thought pircacy had a peak and off season. Where do pirates go on vacation when they have are not working?

Some bloody barstewards they are. Good job they dont opperate in Europe where health and safety laws demand they have a duty of care towards their captives. Dont they realise it makes better financial sense to look after the captives wellfare?

A bunch of gits doing a crummy job and cant even do it properly. Pathetic.

[Fishman_Tx]

For as much as it costs to patrol and escort this entire area, they could just "park it" off the coast and blockade them instead. Keep them bottled up forever. If they could do it to Cuba, they could do it here.