In Somalia, almost all the coastal villages are supporting piracy at sea.
Piracy at sea is successful in Somalia because Somali pirates are well organized and they 
- hire necessary muscle power from unemployed youth to use weapons and communication equipment.
- buy sophisticated guns, Rocket Propelled Grenade launchers, satellite phones and luxury vehicles from foreign businessmen.
- hire poor fishermen to provide their boats and navigational skills at sea to capture the vessel.
- look after hostages well and they try their best to provide good food, drinks and cigarettes.
- successfully collect ransom.
Interesting information is available on the lavish life styles of Somali pirates. Some of the interesting features of Somali pirates and their lavish life styles are:
- Piracy in Somalia is in many ways socially acceptable.
- Most of the Somali pirates are young, between 20 and 35 years of age.
- On an average Somali pirates collect a ransom of $2 million for each captured vessel.
- Somali pirates have money; they have power; and they are getting stronger day by day.
- Somali women say “Marrying a pirate is every Somali girl’s dream. He has power, money, immunity, the weapons to defend the tribe and funds to give to the militias in civil war.”
- Somali pirates wed the most beautiful girls; they are building big houses; they have new cars; new guns.
- “One night I got $1,000 from a pirate,” a prostitute from Djibouti said. “But the luckiest is to sleep with the group leader. You get $3,000.”
- a 36 year old mother of five says “Our children are not worrying about food now, and they go to Islamic schools in the morning and play soccer in the afternoon. They are happy”.
- Educated Somali youth says “Women here don’t talk to you if you are not a pirate”
- Somali pirates don’t mind to look after the hostages well as they get hefty ransom in return. Special restaurants have come up to supply food for the crews of the hijacked ships.
Somali pirates rarely go to jail. But what happens to those Somali pirates who are sent to jail ? How the pirates rot in Somalia jail ?
Somali pirates are kept in Main Jail in Boosaaso and Mandera prison, 70 km east of the Somaliland capital, Hargeisa.
- view ‘ The Pirates of Somalia’ as a slide show from The New York Times.
- view photo essay ‘Somalia’s Face of Modern Piracy’ from Time.
- view photo essay ‘The Brazen Pirates of Somalia’ from Time.
- also view Pirates of Somalia from Jehad Nga Photography.
View here a video clip to compare Somali jail with the jail in Austria.
References:
Arabic News Digest dated October 21
Los Angeles Times dated October 31
Update: November 22
Here is an interesting information to justify lavish life styles of Somali pirates. Kenya’s foreign affairs minister has said on November 21, that Somali pirates have collected more than US $150 million in ransoms over the past year. He has further appealed to the ship owners not to pay ransom for their hijacked vessels. Read more from Shanghai Daily.
Update: November 23
“The average income in Somalia is around $650 a year, but a low level pirate can earn up to $10,000 per raid”. Read more from Sky News.
Also piracy ransom payments are very safe transactions as the money goes down the line through a series of intermediaries, with the local government, the mayor or chiefs having a direct hand. Read more from Guardian.
Update: April 17,2009
The pirates use the ransom money to buy villas and cars at home in Somalia, but UN experts say the money is also flooding the neighbouring Kenyan property market. Read more from France 24.
Update: June 02
High returns from piracy and lavish lifestyles of Somali pirates attract even children and young women to jump on the bandwagon, either by joining one of the sea gangs or marrying a well-heeled pirate. Read more from Reuters.
Update: June 10
View a video clip from BBC News: Somali pirates to be tried in Kenya
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This is a very interesting post and I had no idea that piracy was socially acceptable there. What a sad thing to hear that the average Somalian feels that stealing and kidnapping is okay. What a state that country must have sunk too!
Nita,
Unemployed youth find piracy as an attractive profession to earn money.If the hostages (ships crew) remain calm, they don’t harm them. Somali piracy is increasing day by day because of local support as it is a socially accepted profession.Thanks for your response.
the thai trawler owner who ismaking a noise now
was silent when his vessel was taken over, because
he didnt want to do anything with the release of
of t he crew or the trawler as he expected to cover
his loses by the insurance or if he didnt hv
any insurance for his vesl he was not plannin on
doin anythin either; but now since he alleges
that vsl sunk by indian navy was his trawler he
expects to gain monetaily.
similarly thr r vsls which r abandoned by their
owners once disasters strike the vsl in any form.
crew and shps are abandoned by some unscruplous owners.
any comment old sailor.
INDIAN NAVY HAS DONE A COMMENDABLE JOB.
BY DOING WHAT THEY DID IN WHATEVER FORM THEY COULD.
THIS IS THE BEST DETERENT FOR PIRACY.
IT SHOUD BE THOUGHT OF BLOCKADING THE SHORE BASES
THE PIRATES HAVE.
HV A GREAT DAY SAILOR.
Sue,
I agree. Thanks for your response.
MAYBE IF YOU PEOPLE WOULDN’T DUMP TOXIC WASTE ON OUR WATER WE WOULD NOT HIJACK ANYTHING. YOU GUYS ARE TAKING ADVANTAGE OF SOMALIA WHILE WE ARE HAVING A WAR BUT GUESS WE TOO SMART WE MIGHT HAVE PROBLEMS OVER THEIR BUT WE ARE NOT GOING TO LET FOREIGNERS COME TO OUR COUNTRY AND DUMP TOXIC WASTE AND BE COOL ABOUT IT. HOW WOULD YOU FEEL IF SOMEBODY COMES TO YOUR PROPERTY AND DUMP TOXIC WASTE YOU? “I GUESS YOU GUYS WOULD MAKE VERY BIG DEAL ABOUT IT” BUT NOW IT’S NOT HAPPENING TO YOU SO YOU DON’T CARE. IS THAT WHAT YA SAYING? POOR SOMALIA ARE DRINKING OF OFF WATER THAT IS CONTAMINATED BECAUSE YOU SELFISH PEOPLE DON’T CARE ABOUT BLACK PEOPLE. ALL YOU GUYS WARRING ABOUT IS MONEY WILL HAVE YOU THINK ABOUT WHAT THEY WILL EAT OR DRINK SINCE YOU JUST DUMP TOXIC WASTE IT THEIR WATER AND KILLED ALL THEIR FISHES AND SEA FOOD HAVE YOU? NO I GUESS. BECAUSE THEY JUST BLACK PEOPLE IF THAT WAS A WHITE COUNTRY OR ITALIAN OR RUSSIANS OR MAYBE EVEN CHINA IT WOULD BE A BIG SCENE BUT NOW PEOPLE DON’T CARE ABOUT AFRICA WILL GUESS WHAT WE CARE AND WE DON’T CARE WHAT YA THINK OR CALL US PEER PRESSURE DON’T HURT US. YA MAKING BUSINESS IN PEOPLE WATER AND NOT PAYING THE GOVERNMENT LET SOMALIA GET IT TOGETHER JUST WAIT AND SEE ALL OF YA FUCKING DUMP ASS ABOUT TO GET SUED BY ALL PEOPLE IN SOMALIA…. MESSAGE TO THE WORLD AND THE OWNERS OF THE BOATS, SHIPS WHAT EVER AND YA BETTER LET GO OF THE SOMALI PIRATE MEN THEY PROTECTING THEIR COUNTRY YOU PEOPLE WOULDN’T LISTEN NOW THEY GET THE ATTENTION THEY WANTED THEY GO TO JAIL THAT AIN’T JUSTICE………..