Maritime Piracy In Africa:An Assessment Of Its Legal Effects And Control Measures Taken At International Level

Maritime piracy is an old concept,the history of which can be traced far way back since the time when the human being started using sea as a means of transport.Its criminality was firstly been considered by the customary international law even before codification of the same in 1958 Geneva Convention on the High Seas and later the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.Maritime piracy in Africa particularly Somali piracy and Gulf of Guinea piracy emerged in the 1990s and flourished from 2005 to the present.The root causes of piracy in Africa,although differs from one another but there are common features as to its root causes.These causes and effects brought by piracy in Africa in the maritime industry and shipping transport,and how it is combated internationally and regionally particularly in the legal aspect of it,have moved the author to write this research paper.The control measures put forward to combat piracy in African waters comprised of International and regional measures.However,behind every battle there is a legal standpoint of the battle itself and what is being fought.Piracy is a crime,the organized criminal acts at sea which is termed to be an enemy of all mankind(piracy jure gentium)that ought to be suppressed and eliminated.It is very crucial to look at it as an organized crime that involves networks from ashore,rather than looking at it as crime committed by sea robbers.It is impossible to distinguish piracy taking place in African waters and the crime of money laundering.Ransom obtained from illegal business of piracy have been sanctified and be used to strengthening social economic development of people.Further,the combined forces of the international and regional communities placed in African waters particularly off the coast of Somalia and Gulf of Guinea to combat piracy need to be effective and focused.This research paper has seven chapters.Chapter one focuses on the back ground of the problem,objectives of the study,literature review as well as research methodology;chapter two focuses on definitions of maritime piracy in the view of international law,domestic law and the International Maritime Bureau's view;the arguments on the coastal water piracy,the chapter also talks about nature of piracy activities in African waters and the legal framework of maritime piracy,its strength and weaknesses.Chapter three focuses on reasons behind piracy in Africa especially Gulf of Guinea and Somali piracy and what is actually transpires beyond the given reasons.Chapter four discusses legal effects brought by African piracy intensively to the public international law,particularly on the definition,jurisdiction of national courts,punishment of piracy offence and on the observance of human rights;and to the maritime law,particularly on the liability of carrier,freight,charter-party contracts especially issues of ITL clause,deviation,frustration,safe port issues and off-hire clauses;Also effects on marine insurance,general average distribution,salvage law and maritime liens,and effects on the use of private armed security guards aboard vessels.Chapter five analyzes control measures put forward by international community to combat piracy activities off the coast of Somalia as well as in the Gulf of Guinea,and whether these control measures are effective.This chapter goes further on pointing out challenges facing the suppression of piracy faced by countries deployed naval forces off the coast of Somalia,also challenges faced by the economic communities of west and central African States.Moreover,criminality of piracy under various domestic laws and ambiguity found in these laws on the prosecution of piracy offenders apprehended by naval forces off the coast of Somalia,and the challenges faced by the prosecuting countries,have been analyzed in chapter six of this research work.Lastly,in chapter seven,the author have drawn the conclusion and given various recommendation that are likely to properly control and eliminate maritime piracy in Africa,and the legal effects brought by piracy activities in African waters in both public international law,International maritime law and domestic laws,and stabilizing them as a better way of suppression and elimination of piracy activities in African waters.