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Old 29-09-2010, 10:49   #1
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Spain Wants to Turn Somali Pirates into . . . Fishermen

Couldn't find the article in English, but here is the scoop:

The International Contact Group for Somalia, met in Madrid, Spain.

Miguel Angel Moratinos, the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, said Spain will offer 3 million euros (wasn't Spain until a few month ago on the brink of bankruptcy?) to the Somali government (pleeeaze, they will probably stage a coup d'etat so they can disappear with the funds) as part of a plan to help them develop their fishing industry with the hope that this will somehow stop the acts of piracy. Meaning that they believe they can turn the pirates into fishermen.

Now, I remember reading a while ago that pirate candidates travel from far away to Somalia hoping to be among the chosen lucky few that are accepted. The perks are things like plenty of food and booze, money and women. Plus, you get to ride in fast boats and shoot at things.

I am sure they will gladly give up "the life" in exchange for being tired and covered in fish slime.
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Old 29-09-2010, 10:50   #2
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Sounds fishy to me
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Old 29-09-2010, 11:15   #3
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And what alternative would you propose, Monica?

En Inglés ➥ » Sunatimes.com | Suna Times - Somali News, Sprots, Videos iyo Music

International Contact Group on Somalia - FINAL Communiqué ➥ International Contact Group on Somalia - FINAL Communiqué

Spanish Bankruptcy ➥ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/george..._b_566923.html
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Old 29-09-2010, 11:28   #4
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It seems the only good way to stop it is to fix Somalia first. The UN has put pressure (kind of a strong word I think) on nations to help patrol the waters at times - why not organize a task force to clean up somalia and make it a productive member of the world?

The problem there seems to affect many countries - it seems much more viable to spend money fixing it for good (if possible) rather then dealing with ransoms..etc.
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Old 29-09-2010, 11:39   #5
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There's a goverment in Somalia? News to me!
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Old 29-09-2010, 11:43   #6
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And then every Tom, Dick and Harry will threaten to become pirates unless someone pays them not to
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Old 29-09-2010, 12:05   #7
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The recent surge in pirating got its start in Somali after foreign fishing fleets came into Somalian waters and pushed out local fisherman and depleted its tuna stocks. Without a functioning government, local fisherman took things into their own hands and started hijacking foreign tuna boats to take back what they felt was rightfully theirs. They soon learned that pirating was a lot more lucrative than fishing. A generation later, it's a way of life.

Given the history, the idea by Spain may make sense.
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Old 29-09-2010, 12:11   #8
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And what alternative would you propose, Monica?
Robin Hood was considered a thief by some and a hero by others. If the pirates are indeed helping the poor folk, a fishing rod and a boat will not cause a shift in loyalty.

Sorry, Gord, but nothing comes to mind.
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Old 29-09-2010, 12:22   #9
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Years ago, Somalia begged for help in keeping out foreign vessels poaching their fish almost into extinction. They also begged for help in stopping foreign vessels from dumping toxic waste in their waters.

We didn't care enough to send help when it was just the Somali's dying from starvation from loosing their fishing. Now we care, because it is affecting us.

We waited long enough for it to become a problem with no easy solution.

It does pay to love your neighbor. Although I don't have much hope that, on a global level, we will learn that easily.

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Old 29-09-2010, 12:25   #10
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Except the aid we currently give them ends up in the wrong hands:

BBC News - Contractors divert Somalia aid, UN report says

I'm not generally a fan of war, but for $3 million, maybe you buy 3 cruise missiles and sink 3 suspected mother ships while in port. I bet that goes farther than giving them $3 mill to buy RPGs for their "fishing economy".


"Even worse, WFP food aid and profits from it are said to end up in the hands of armed groups, including Islamist militants and other armed groups undermining the weak Somali government. Profits from the food aid trade were even used to buy arms, the report indicated."

from: afrol News - UN confirms Somalia food aid corruption
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Old 29-09-2010, 12:31   #11
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They already are fishermen most of the time! They run illegal immigrants the rest of the time, and just occasionally when the opportunity arises hit a boat or ship.
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Old 29-09-2010, 12:48   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dacust View Post
Years ago, Somalia begged for help in keeping out foreign vessels poaching their fish almost into extinction. They also begged for help in stopping foreign vessels from dumping toxic waste in their waters.

We didn't care enough to send help when it was just the Somali's dying from starvation from loosing their fishing. Now we care, because it is affecting us.

We waited long enough for it to become a problem with no easy solution.

It does pay to love your neighbor. Although I don't have much hope that, on a global level, we will learn that easily.

-dan
Indeed!

No anti-piracy plan will succeed unless there is a parallel effort to restore a Somali government to normal working levels.

The United Nations must seek to rebuild the nation of Somalia. Somalia's neighbours, its fellow Arab states, and the world's larger and more generous powers, all need to combine to offer a long-term plan on how they can rebuild the authority of the government, defeat the warlords in charge of various separate areas in the country, and offer the people some hope, and an alternative to piracy.

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Except the aid we currently give them ends up in the wrong hands:
BBC News - Contractors divert Somalia aid, UN report says
Quoting the UN secretary general's special representative for Somalia, Ahmedou Ould Abdallah:
“... We have to go to the root cause of the problem, which is [the] lack of a supported government. We have a government - why don't we support it? ...”

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Originally Posted by sailingmonica View Post
... Sorry, Gord, but nothing comes to mind.
In which case, I hope you’ll forgive me for filing yours under “mindless criticism”.
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Old 29-09-2010, 13:10   #13
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Quote:
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In which case, I hope you’ll forgive me for filing yours under “mindless criticism”.
I see this subject struck a sensitive cord, because you are usually, well, more refined. It is clear to me that you believe in helping those people, and that is absolutelly fine by me. But, if you read my initial post you'll see I wasn't critical, just sarcastic. So, "mindless sarcasm" would be more appropriate.
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Old 29-09-2010, 18:39   #14
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Somailia was completely destabilised by western powers trying to topple the legimate Islamic government. Perhaps if we stopped fooling around in others peoples countries we might get a better world

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Old 29-09-2010, 19:22   #15
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Somailia was completely destabilised by western powers trying to topple the legimate Islamic government. Perhaps if we stopped fooling around in others peoples countries we might get a better world

Dave
I wasn't going there, but it's just too true. It's that old "Love your neighbor" and "Love your enemy" thing cropping up again.

The destabilizing was what kept them from being able to protect their own waters. That's what enabled the vultures to flock in.

And now the "civilized" countries would like to go in a take over and "save" them from their ineptitude. Well, that is, they would if there was anything there they wanted. But since there's not, they want to do just enough so Somalia will quit annoying us.

Sorry, do I sound pessimistic?

But seriously, at least trying to get them back fishing is better than bombing them off the face of the earth. But I think it's going to take a multi-pronged approach: Help stabilize the government, help the people find a way to make a living, and if the government can't then handle the pirate situation, help them squash that, as well. Problem is, if it's really done right, I bet whoever does the "helping" will have strings attached.

I do sound pessimistic, don't I... Well, I read history. Both ancient and recent.

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