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The Current events off the East Coast of Somalia have now hit home in the United States.
The hijacking of the cargo ship Maersk Alabama is the first U.S. Flagged vessel to be boarded and hijacked in a string of recent (and recurring) pirate attacks near the Gulf of Aden. Armed Somali pirates successfully boarded the vessel and took the crew hostage. There have been close to one hundred pirate attacks in these waters in the past year. These attacks have caused a historical response by numerous foreign navies providing anti-piracy patrols. Combined Task Force 151 was established and is designed to curtail the spike in pirate attacks by using warships from more than thirteen countries working together off the east coast of Somalia.
Even with this level of cooperation between countries and their naval forces, the pirate attacks are still occurring. There were six ships boarded last week alone, and currently over 200 crewmembers are being held hostage. One of the vessels hijacked was a luxury French Yacht that had both adults and children onboard. The French Navy attempted a rescue that resulted in the death of one of the hostages and two of the pirates.
The increasing activity, broadening range and reach of the pirates and their armed attacks has vessel owners (both commercial and private) trying to figure out how they will minimize their exposure to pirate attacks. Naval Commanders have publicly announced the shipping industry will need to look at measures that include hiring an armed security team to provide protection. The International Shipping Industry has expressed reluctance to arm their crew and has taken the position that this will only add to the violence.
Security companies are rushing to the Gulf of Aden with the hope of providing security for the vessels … they sense there is money to be made and that shipping lines and vessel owners with deep pockets are there to be tapped because of the increasing threat.
There is opportunity for security companies but I truly believe this has the potential of turning into a disaster if some of these security companies are actually hired. Hiring a professional security service company that does not have real-world law-enforcement experience providing appropriate solutions in a civilian environment can be a critical mistake. I have spent a great deal of time looking at some of these security companies who claim to already be providing armed security onboard commercial vessels. Most of these companies have military philosophies, are comprised of ex-Special Forces operators, and use that very fact as a key marketing point.
Merchant vessels are not an acceptable environment for the type of “solutions” most of these security companies will provide the vessel owners. That means the solutions provided by them are not acceptable. Vessel owners, if they are not already concerned about liability exposure, are going to quickly become aware and concerned.
The crews on these vessels are civilians working for major companies who move cargo or people throughout the world. Private Military Companies or Private Security Companies with a military philosophy (and military response training) are not going to provide the type of service that a civilian company needs – the very nature of their training and background sets the stage for a response that exposes the vessel owner (and the owner of any cargo they are carrying) to increased liability. A professional security team trained on civilian law enforcement protocols and procedures and that operating mentality and approach to threat response (and deterrence) would be better suited in these types of situations.
The above events that we mention (only a few of many happening almost on a daily basis) involving the hijackings of merchant vessels should not trigger a “knee jerk” response by the shipping companies. That over-reaction usually jumps what is the prudent approach that if followed would likely prevent events escalating to the point where a military (or para-military) type of response is needed. Perhaps also, that approach is not considered or is overlooked, because conventional security companies do not have the specialized training and experience to implement those types of solutions and vessel owners do not realize that such solutions are available to them. The defense of a vessel should be focused first on civilian-type law enforcement procedures, protocols and awareness. The Somali pirates and the lawless nature of problems within Somalia may need to be addressed with military operations. But the situation onboard a vessel has to escalate significantly out of control to get to a decision to exercise a military-type response. The Military Special Forces (and security firms founded and staffed by its ex-members) are very good at what they do, but their work is done while in conflict; hot and cold war zones and areas. They are not exposed to and trained in the intricacies of dealing with threats in a civilian setting where there is very real and significant civil liability exposure.
Proper security solutions are available that can prevent that type of dangerous escalation to the point where a military type response is required. Civilian law-enforcement and specifically Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams are very well suited for providing the appropriate type (and level) of solution that vessel owners need. My company, Triton Global Services (Triton) is founded on SWAT principles, protocols, procedures, and liability awareness and these are areas of expertise that we are highly capable to advise client and their security service providers on.
The companies who own merchant vessels have to be concerned with the safety of their crew and vessels, along with the liability involved when providing security onboard their vessels. Triton provides a level of service to help the client address all these issues and the variables a vessel encounters when traversing different international waters (and areas that require compliance with a host of different laws).
Triton’s consulting services on policies and procedures are based on decades of real-world law enforcement experience. We know how to deal with a high-risk event by using established tools and tactics that effectively (with the least liability exposure possible) bring to a conclusion, threats in civilian environments (including those at sea). We make those years of experience available to our consulting clients.
Please watch for Part 2 of this article, to continue the discussion.
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