[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 6]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 8760-8761]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


                      MARITIME PIRACY AND PIRATES

                                 ______
                                 

                              HON. TED POE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 14, 2016

  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, when the word pirate comes to mind, 
many envision treasure seeking ruffians with eye patches. Unbeknownst 
to most of us, pirates still exist: lurking the coast of East Africa, 
specifically Somalia and Kenya, the Gulf of Aden, the Gulf of Guinea, 
The Malacca Strait, and the Indian subcontinent. Pirates today, 
however, can do more damage than forcing a poor fellow to walk the 
plank. Regions plagued by poverty and extreme terrorism have raised a 
whole new breed of manipulative, violent, maritime hijackers who will 
stop at nothing to achieve their goals. Modern piracy is not simply a 
matter of economic loss or threatened safety, but a risk to the entire 
globe due to the close-knit ties pirates have with terrorists.
  All eyes of the international community were suddenly turned to the 
coast of Somalia when pirates hijacked a Russian supertanker full of 
oil and army tanks. What did the American government do? Nothing. 
Nothing that is, until the unimaginable happened. A U.S. cargo ship was 
openly attacked by pirates, and the captain was held as ransom for 
several days. Since then, efforts have been taken to defend ships from 
maritime crime, such as legalization of weapons on board for commercial 
shipping vessels. Is this passive defense enough? When analyzing the 
cost of insurance, freight, rerouting, and ransoms, the price we pay to 
watch these pirates roam the high seas ranges to as high as $16 billion 
a year. Yet there are far greater non-monetary costs awaiting us in the 
future. If a ship is attacked at just the right place, it could result 
in the closure and seizure of invaluable international waterways.
  Though many pirates have different motives than terrorists, terrorist 
tactics are frequently used in hijackings. Both terrorists and pirates 
traumatize civilians and prey off of fear. As of now there is no 
international community specifically designated to prevent piracy like 
there is for terrorism, simply because the legal jurisdiction of piracy 
is in question. What we all should agree on, however, is that maritime 
piracy is a devastating form of terrorism.
  The topic of most apprehension is the proven fact that modern pirates 
fund terrorist groups. Whether taken by force or friendship from the 
pirates, Al-Qaeda now possesses around 15 cargo vessels. Confiscation 
of vessels hasn't been the only recent breach in maritime security. 
Thanks to unobstructed leadership of Somali pirates, we've experienced 
an increase in maritime trafficking of narcotics, people and illicit 
goods, and arms proliferation. The evidence shows that maritime 
terrorism has recently gained the attention of most terrorist groups. 
Large and heavily loaded commercial vessels, offshore gas rigs, and 
maritime hub ports are easy shots for maritime terrorists, who seek 
mass destruction of human life, infrastructure, and nature.
  Though piracy off the Somalia coast has recently decreased, it has 
caught flame and prospered in other regions of Africa, such as the 
waters of Guinea and Nigeria. Squashing these pirates once and for all 
is easier said than done. They do not proudly announce their presence 
on the sea, but rather use silence and stealth to steal an average of 
$5,000 to $15,000 per ship. Some of these raids are exceedingly 
violent, while others are bloodless. In both terrorism and maritime 
piracy, there must be extensive planning, and those involved must be 
willing to sacrifice their lives.
  Our friends in England recently recognized a dire loophole in 
worldwide attempts to combat terrorism. Since 2010, the international 
community has poured billions into the hands of pirates as ransom for 
the release of vessels and crew. These pirates are not necessarily 
terrorists themselves, yet many have direct connections to major terror 
groups. We can be sure that piracy has summoned nearby terrorist groups 
with the scent of money and the bribe of civilian fear. Maritime piracy 
is now used as the ever-prosperous bank for terrorists. Great Britain 
understands this and is in the midst of editing a bill which prohibits 
all forms of ransom payments to terrorists.
  Somali pirates appear to give the ransoms from their pirated material 
to al-Qaeda. There is no doubt that piracy could not only fund, but 
also be used as a form of terrorism or for political purposes, 
especially because of the unusual amount of security breaches easily 
accessible on ports and at sea compared to land. Take for example al-
Qaeda's attack on United States. It only took two men in a tiny boat to 
kill seventeen U.S. citizens and injure 39 more, just by placing a 
shape charge against the hull of the USS Cole while it was refueling at 
a Yemeni port.
  We must ensure the future does not hold a pirate-terrorist group 
merger. This event would spin to a halt all anti-terrorism efforts. Al 
Shabaab and al-Qaeda are difficult and resilient as it is, but imagine 
these groups with access to strategic waterways, billions of dollars, 
high grade ships in their grasp, and American captives at their 
disposal. Debate on the floor of the House has found, piracy is 
``Booming without any credible deterrence, without the type of 
deterrence you saw at one point in time from the British navy or from 
the U.S. fleet. As we speak, there are 27 vessels and 449 hostages 
being held by Somali pirates'' Yet nothing substantial is done.
  Though many ships are now well-armed, piracy continues without 
hiccup. It's time the United States takes some action and put these 
outlaws in the high seas out of business and send them to Davy Jones' 
locker. An estimated $160 million was paid as ransoms to pirates in one 
year alone. Using a private navy is almost as drastic of a cost. So, 
the question is: what should we do? One of the most considered 
solutions is that of modern privateering. Privateers as defined by 
international law are ``vessels belonging to private owners, and 
sailing under commission of war empowering the person to whom it is 
granted to carry on all forms of hostility which are permissible at sea 
by the usages of war.'' Privateers will be given the opportunity to 
disable dangerous non-state enemies, and in the process, create 
revenue. This is not a hard decision. It's a win-win.
  The U.S. military has used a form of privateering in the past certain 
types of air combat and warfare. In fact, in the 1930's, the U.S. Navy 
bought blimps from--and hired--a private company, Goodyear Tire and 
Rubber Company, to build a fleet of airships and blimps. These blimps 
were previously used for advertising, yet the Navy used these simple 
civilian mechanisms to help defend the country.
  In the past, the problem of piracy was largely wiped out due to 
privateers. The privateers, though used as a sort of political pawn, 
were extremely successful and motivated. In a system of capitalism, 
it's important to consider all parties, and the relationship in which 
each benefits another. If privateering and letters of marque were used 
by the United States government today, the government would gain a 
significant amount of hegemony, credibility, and sea power. The 
privateering ship owners would receive rewards or payments in return 
for the seized pirate ships, as well as a higher safety and low 
insurance prices. Maritime piracy is indeed a threat that, if not soon 
stopped, will lead to increased terrorism and economic disaster.
  In my Congressional office, we employ interns to help with writing 
and tasks around the office. One of our interns, Rachel Jones, 
researched this issue regarding piracy on the open seas. Her help this 
summer was valuable and I thank her for all of her work and assistance. 
I wish Rachel luck in her future endeavors and with the rest of her 
time at my alma mater--Abilene Christian University.

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  And that's just the way it is.

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