Chatham House Report on Piracy

Interestingly, coastal communities or “Pirate capitals” such as Eyl and Hobyo which actually host the pirates throughout their off-shore operations did not show similar evidence of having benefitted through additional investments into the community. While the report does not suggest piracy as a method for developing underprivileged regions, it does suggest that piracy clearly benefits some sectors of the Somali community and that if piracy were to stop, there would be sections of the underprivileged in Somalia who would be deeply impacted, which would in turn undermine local security and development. Furthermore, due to the alleged benefits piracy funding has had on the local economy in these inland communities and in provincial Somali capitals, the report suggests that political elites would be unlikely to act decisively against piracy.

The alleged ransom distribution in Puntland is part of what the report points to as a “deep- rooted culture of sharing” whereby wealthy Somalis combine their resources within their social-clan and in doing so aspire to increase their financial standing cooperatively. This is part of a cultural obligation to assist others in one’s community through traditional economic survival patterns, which in this instance involves considerable financial redistribution and investment in inland areas. This reality combined with large local groups who have a vested-interest in the continuation of piracy for development purposes is said by the report to render the off-shore momentum of piracy difficult to stop and is also why the report suggests an on-shore, rather than off shore solution to piracy.

The “Treasure Mapped” report has been subject to a degree of negative commentary from some quarters, for its allegedly weak data, gaps and errors of information that some commentators believe affect the implementation and accuracy of suggestions. Further criticisms have been based on allegations that the report unfairly targets the reputation of the people in Puntland specifically, Somalia more generally and the counter-piracy initiatives of the Somali Government. In doing so, they argue that the report links Puntland and the government to piracy activities, when these areas and institutions have actually taken extensive steps to combat piracy, rather than participating in or facilitating it.

As part of its conclusions, the report suggests finding alternative economic stimulus to the Somali economy, as without such alternative job prospects, Somalis will continue to search out extra legal means of employment, which includes piracy. While controversially for counter-piracy initiatives, the report suggests that a “military crack-down… would deprive one of the world’s poorest nations of an important source of income and aggravate poverty,” the report concludes that despite the fact that a large number of people benefit from the proceeds of piracy, this should not stop the international community from acting to find land-based solutions which would ideally focus on attempts to replace piracy as a source of income in these communities.