Ecoterra – Somali Marine & Coastal Monitor Part XV "We Will Retaliate for the Killings of Our Men"

As clouds are gathering around the Horn of Africa, a terrible hit against Somalia and the Somali piracy may have been planned for later April – beginning May. This would be most unwise to go ahead with the ‘Afghanization of Somalia’ plan which seems to be the real target of the colonial powers of Europe that totally manipulate the US political establishment and through the long prepared maneuvers have triggered the arrival of an international flotilla off the Somali coast.

The result of a flame in Somalia will be a fire throughout the West.

Russia, China, Japan and India are among the top losers in this purely colonial adventure, and it is strange that the respective rulers at Moscow, Beijing, Tokyo and Delhi fail to see their ancestors in the place of today’s Somalis who are exposed to an evil machination against their existence.

The 1853 – 1856 Crimean War against Tsarist Russia, the barbaric destruction of the Old Summer Palace of Beijing by the Anglo-French in 1860, the nuclear bombardment of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the ensuing Japanese Instrument of Surrender (aboard USS Missouri, September 2, 1945) or the 1757 Polashir Juddho (Plassey) Battle in West Bengal, India, have all the characteristics of similarity with the current anti-Somali intentions of the colonial powers, but still through various techniques of duplicity, mendacity, and perfidy, the four great Asiatic powers seem unable to detect where their real interests lie.

If Russia, China, Japan and India are driven to positions of impotent follower or feeble sidekick of the colonial West, recently re-unified within the NATO, the stage will be ready for further decomposition of the Asiatic landmass and fratricidal wars spanning from Africa to Asia.

The last Ecoterra press release demonstrates that in order to pursue their policies, the colonial states do not bother to deliberately assassinate their own citizens taken as hostage – in reality not of the Somali pirates but of the colonial states’ policies.

Ecoterra Intl. – SMCM (Somali Marine & Coastal Monitor). Part XV.

Ecoterra International – Updates, Statements & Clearinghouse Citations

A Voice from the Truth- & Justice-Seekers, who sit between all chairs, because they are not part of organized white-collar or no-collar-crime in Somalia or overseas, and who neither benefit from global naval militarization, from the illegal fishing and dumping in Somali waters or the piracy of merchant vessels, nor from the booming insurance business or the exorbitant ransom-, risk-management- or security industry, while neither the protection of the sea, the development of fishing communities or the humanitarian assistance to abducted seafarers and their families is receiving the required adequate attention, care and funding.

2009-04-12 23h57:23 UTC

EA Illegal Fishing and Dumping Hotline: +254-714-747090 (confidentiality guaranteed) - email: somalia[at]ecoterra.net

EA Seafarers Assistance Programme Emergency Helpline: SMS to +254-738-497979 or call +254-733-633-733

"The pirates must not be allowed to destroy our dream !"

Cpt. Florent Lemaçon - F/Y Tanit - killed by attack of French commandos - 10. April 2009

- none of the various, local or foreign pirate outfits we like to add -

Clearing-house

News from sea-jackings, abductions or newly attacked ships

Spin-doctors are on it with high revs and on both sides of the Atlantic - in France (Le Grand Bastion or still La Grande Nation ?) as well as in the apparently Re-United States of America under Obama. While the cowboy spin-doctors have to cover up and prepare for more evolving "Lt Col. Custer"-like operations, they wrongfully reported through their media-outlets that the mediation efforts of Somali elders and respected leaders to save all the lives and free Captain Phillips unharmed had broken down. What the Sioux and Cheyenne were for Custer in 1875, the Somali Majerteen and HabrGedir clans are for U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus and the US Navy in Somalia today and another Afghanistan seems to be in the making.

Well, it is correct that the mediation offer by the elders had a set-back, when the US Navy through a US-passport-holding Somali interpreter on board of USS Bainchild had refused the plan to rescue the captain by the only feasible and quick, but peaceful solution available, which was characterized by an "everybody-goes-home" approach, which could have been achieved by traditional Somali peacemaking efforts. But the Americans insisted that they wanted to arrest the four young Somali pirates, have them in their custody and tried elsewhere - and it seems that they wanted this more than to save the life of the captain, because the Navy meanwhile had tried a poking approach by sending a commando-boat towards the lifeboat, where the hostage and his captors were holding out, in order to see how quick they would get some response-fire - this already was a chapter from the get-them-down manual.

Someone near US-American President Obama and close to the next-of-kin of the US Captain should have made a move already then and not allowed even the slightest thought to write off the captain as collateral for the mere satisfaction of having either killed or captured a few illiterate and mislead Somali youngsters. Was the FBI therefore already working on another script for Black Hawk Down II ? Apparently they were not really interested to save lives and avert a disaster, since post-mortem-like hero stories about the American captain were already circulated, as if it had been decided to sacrifice him in a similar fashion as the French - with their ill-advised and ill-conceived operation - sacrificed Florent Lemacon - the captain of F/Y Tanit.

What the strategists of the FBI negotiation team simply did not understand was that the elders - for handing over the captain without any ransom - would have had to bring back the young pirate fellows to their parents, otherwise they would have no mandate from them to act and would come home empty-handed. Without the proposed agreement the elders could do not much, because any form of handing over the captain together with the boys to the Americans would have been a suicide mission for the elders themselves and it would have been sure death for them back home on land. Actually the elders do not even have the right to hand over Somali nationals to a foreign nation, since that is extradition, which only the government (TFG) could do.

Still the elders tried by various means and lines of remote communication to talk some sense into the pirate boys. This morning one injured pirate, who had been stabbed during the pirate-attack by a US-sailor, gave himself up and was since then held on the warship, now serving as the "one injured pirate who was captured" in the spin, though he was since long not anymore on the boat when his 3 compatriots succumbed in Navy-Seal sniper fire. As long as the Americans wanted to have it all there was no peaceful solution for the others - and that was clear since days, though the Pentagon in between seemed to prefer another strategy even more, which was involving a ransom payment to whoever brings them the captain alive and the pirate boys in whatever condition. This means they would have even closed a deal with the devil in order to get what they wanted - which was the pirates and the captain - and as it seems they wanted them in that order of priorities, which means death to the pirates since surely they had to at least try credibly to get the captain out alive.

Escalation was therefore already preprogrammed. The offer by the elders and peacemakers, though they were angry by the way they were handled by the US Navy, still stood. But the FBI apparently was already working also on another script and was not so much interested to save lives. With one injured pirate out and a mock attack repulsed, nobody could have believed that this would have made the remaining three young rouges less dangerous and ready to take the captain down with them. The teams therefore were already preparing to take the other three down as soon there was any possibility and it was done when the US-Americans finally managed to achieve what they wanted in their way: 3 pirates dead - captain free, was the message the world received this evening, while still several pirate groups with hostage vessels were preparing another go to avert this and pirates from the German-owned hostage-vessel HANSA STAVANGER also opted for another expedition to go into the stand-off site. Reportedly the commander of USS Bainbridge, Lieutenant Commander David Fowler, gave the order to take the pirates down.

Apparently there was an AK pointed at tied-up Philips and the commander authorized snipers to take their shots. It was a split section decision. They had standing authority from the US President to take action in the case of an imminent threat to the hostage’s life. The SEAL snipers were on Bainbridge about 20 meters or so from the life boat and sea conditions were ‘deteriorating’. It sounded like Bainbridge had the life boat under tow at the time. Are the combined naval strategists now preparing for even another script of Black Hawk Down II? Harardheere resident Hassan Jimale told Reuters this morning: "We woke with loud sounds of helicopters flying over Haradheere and we could see the legs and faces of white soldiers as the helicopter flew low. Maybe they are monitoring the sea or pirates planning to reinforce those on the lifeboat". What Reuters didn't report is the fact that while resident scrambled for safety because they feared an air-raid and bombings, the NATO choppers dropped leaflets this time and also threw some empty NATO bags outside the village.

Do the spin-doctors believe that such PR can solve the problem or is that a psy ops-preparation of the long awaited "anti-piracy invasion" of Somalia?

Responding to the news of Capt. Phillips' rescue, US-American President Obama said: "I share the country's admiration for the bravery of Captain Phillips and his selfless concern for his crew. His courage is a model for all Americans." and he added: "I am very pleased that Captain Phillips has been rescued and is safely on board the USS Boxer". Obama said also: "We remain resolved to halt the rise of piracy in this region". Obama in his first public statement on the situation elaborated then: "To achieve that goal, we must continue to work with our partners to prevent future attacks, be prepared to interdict acts of piracy and ensure that those who commit acts of piracy are held accountable for their crimes".

"Well said, but if US-Americans and their allies will be able to assist in the most important goal of a prevention policy - the re-establishment of law and justice as well as the sound socio-economic development of Somalia remains questionable, since already moment after the news made the rounds Somali pirates vowed retaliation after the captain' captors were killed, thereby making obsolete the mediation efforts of elders, parents, local leaders and humanitarian groups. "Every country will be treated the way it treats us", said Abdullahi Lami, one of the pirates holding a Greek ship anchored in the pirate den of Gaan, a central Somali town. "In the future, America will be the one mourning and crying", he told The Associated Press by telephone. "We will retaliate for the killings of our men". He gave no details and it was not clear in what way the pirates could retaliate, though some fear they could take their revenge on the hundreds of other foreign nationals they hold on seized ships, AP reported. "The Somali government wanted the drama to end in a peaceful way, but anyone who is involved in this latest case had the choice to use violence or other means", Abdulkhadir Walayo, the Somali prime minister's spokesman, told The Associated Press.

Vice Adm. Bill Gortney, commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, said the American operation "could escalate violence in this part of the world, no question about it". Jamac Habeb, a 30-year-old self-proclaimed pirate, told The Associated Press that the three pirates' deaths were "a painful experience". Speaking from the pirate hub, Eyl, he added: "this will be a good lesson for us". "From now on, if we capture foreign ships and their respective countries try to attack us, we will kill them," Habeb said. "Now they became our number one enemy", he said of U.S. forces. Another illusive pirate leader, who calls himself Mr. Hussein, currently in the city of Eyl in Puntland, told Horseed Media he was unhappy to hear the deaths of his friends killed by US and French navy forces.

Hussein stated that he will avenge his slain friends, promising to hijack more western ships."….we will continue and will never stop…. I promise to avenge my fallen friends, they will pay for what they did….." said the pirate king. Hussein who usually uses different aliases told a Horseed Media reporter in Garowe, the capital of Puntland, that his group will change their tactics of engaging the ships that they hijack. He did not elaborate on, what their new tactic would be. The threats from one of the biggest pirate groups in Somalia came just hours after the US navy rescued an American Captain, killing 3 Somali pirates. Hussein told the local media that his group will not stop their piracy activities, and he promised more hijackings in the near future.

So far it had been completely ruled out for Somali pirates to harm captive foreign crews and there is only one isolated case several years ago known, whereby a crew member of a Taiwanese fishing boat hijacked for six months was killed by pirates. Somali pirates until today were proud to have a humanitarian code of conduct and punished their own for any violation. Many analysts as well as humanitarian groups involved in mediation efforts fear that it will be extremely difficult now to appeal to pirates to respect human live and the dignity of innocent seafarers or to gain access if sailors fall ill. Andrew Mwangura of the Seafarers Assistance programme also criticized on national television in Kenya the media hype concerning the fatal operation for the rescued US-American captain, while often the media not even report when whole crews of Filipinos or other nationalities are rescued after months of tough negotiations and mediation by people with the right knowledge and respect for any human live.

On the other side of the Atlantic, the Elysée is busy cooking up the "how it all happened" - version of President Sarkozy, who is said to have ordered the second and final but bungled and fatal commando attack on F/Y Tanit, which killed the one hostage, who - as captain - actually could have - and maybe had - told the French attackers and their German backers to back off. Why all the chin-up media stunts, if Sarkozy just can watch the full movies of the 24/7 video documentation of the Tanit case available to him? The tapes of the intercepted radio communications between pirates and allies, which allegedly revealed that the pirates would execute their hostages and blow up their vessel might reveal that they might have planned this only for the case of a deadly attack against them. Leaked secret requests to bring those arrested 3 Somali pirates from the F/Y Tanit case back to Somalia (or was this only concerning the dead bodies?) revealed at least the attempt to let the captured witnesses disappear. The French were so keen to take the first two lots of pirates to Paris, why not necessarily these three? And where are the others, many Somalis ask. Again and again the question: Where are the others?

French officials said three pirates were shot from afar by French snipers, two falling dead immediately while another dropped into the sea (dead or alive?), while overflying aircraft had reported earlier at least 7-8 pirates of the 14 men gang being on the Tanit. Mr Lemacon is believed to have died in an exchange of fire as he tried to duck down the yacht's hatch, was he or was he shot in the head through the deck from above? In an admission that casts doubts over the decision to free the hostages by force, Defence Minister Herve Morin said he could not rule out the possibility that Florent Lemacon had been hit by a French commando's bullet. "There will be a judicial inquiry", he told French radio and promised a post-mortem, though it was not revealed where the body is at the moment at it was not immediately known if Lemacon's body was on the plane repatriating the other hostages, or whether it would be transported separately. Two pirates were confirmed dead, while another three were caught and are now expected to be taken to France to stand trial. "After two successful armed assaults to save citizens from yachts in the same waters last year, Sarkozy’s luck appears to have run out" writes the London Times, whereby the author overlooks that in the first case the crew and vessel were not freed by an armed assault but by an amicable ransom deal from which everybody walked away safely - only to find French helicopter units much later swooping after every Dahir, Tarik and Hassan who dared that day to be in the open of the area on land, where the French then shot-up a car traveling along the coast, which might have had connections with the pirates, and arrested the six passengers.

The 50+20 members of the combined French and whosoever death squad specifically flew in to execute the assault on the pirates on F/Y TANIT and took only six minutes to create a totally unnecessary outcome, which certainly will have far reaching consequences. Though we know from the case of Princess Diana how difficult it will be to establish the truth and nothing but the truth in Paris and Hafun - we believe that we all owe a thorough investigation to Florent Lemarcon, who only wanted to stay away from all the inhumanity of western so called civilization and find with his wife and son a better world and lifestyle. Speaking to French newspaper Ouest France before the travel, Captain Lemacon said they wanted to change their priorities in life. "We don't want our child to receive the sort of education that the government is concocting for us. We have got rid of the television and everything that seemed superfluous to concentrate on what is essential", he said.

Was that what made him himself superfluous or the least priority on the save-the-hostages list of the commando-attack? His widow, son and two friends, who are the freed hostages, arrived today at a military airport outside Paris - and the press was not permitted to hear what they had to say. It is not so sure that this was done to give the survivors some respect and peace or to prepare them and their answers for the many questions, which still are open. Florent Lemacon's father, Francis Lemacon, issued a statement today paying tribute to his son: "Florent and his wife, with Colin on the Tanit, chose a lifestyle. In their own way, they fought for their beliefs: in peace, ecology, tolerance and the right to live differently, solidarity and the value of sharing", he said. "With his moral sense, a pacifist is dead. With his love for Africa and Africans, a traveler is dead. With his rejection of comfort, of the world of money, a dreamer is dead. "With his passion for, and knowledge of the ocean, a sailor is dead. With his taste for freedom, a philosopher and musician is dead". Many believe Florent Lemacon would have managed to deal with the pirates in a friendly way and even by himself would have achieved a peaceful outcome - even if helped by nobody - if only the French Navy would not have interfered.

"We have copious human history to show us that mass retaliation does not work", writes Rowan Wolf in his blog and concludes: "What they do is to create more people to "join the cause" to engage in more indiscriminate attacks, which face harsher and more wide spread retaliation. Hence, virtually all societies embrace the rule of law to control the destructive nature of mass revenge. When a crime has been committed, those who are the perpetrators are sought out and brought to trial. The evidence is presented and the penalty for those deemed guilty meted out. In the United States, this embracing of mass retaliation was not born under the Bush administration. It was just legitimated and nurtured under that administration. Do we have a situation of a wild fire that now burns hotly in the breasts of many Americans [and French and Somalis]? Has a self-righteous blood lust become an acceptable response? Are the rash of seemingly indiscriminate murders around the countries a manifestation of this same illness? I fear they are, and I am both saddened and horrified by what we might become". And the further escalation and repercussions can already be observed in Somalia: Most pirate gangs have taken the at least some or the majority of the vessel's crew-members off the ships and hold them now in hideouts on land - away from the relative comfort on the vessels and under the same horrible conditions the local people have to survive.

Ecoterra, however, vows to continue to stand in harms way - against all odds and against all aggressors.

MV MAERSK ALABAMA arrived yesterday evening in Mombasa. US-American sailors had to remain on board, since the vessel is considered by the FBI to be a crime-scene. Since her captain now also could be rescued unharmed the crew will be re-united soon.

Status of abducted vessels:

T/B YENEGOA OCEAN - 11 Nigerians still held partly on and partly on land near their tugboat. Owner and government not willing to help. Longest pending case: 8 and a half month !!!

M/V JAIKUR I - still held in Mogadishu with crew of 22 remaining illegally abducted - while insurance case for damaged cargo is pending. Indian Government is now providing tickets at least for the evacuation of 14 Indian seafarers, since owner was not able to send aircraft for the evacuation of all crew.

MT STOLT-STRENGTH - abducted since 10th November 2008. 23 Filipino crew have little hope and no more trust in the ship-owner. Further misuse of vessel as mothership for another piracy expedition was averted three days ago and vessel has - after a deal with the local clan at her present location fell through - been given 48 h to leave the Harardheere coast or face action. If followed the vessel should return to Garcad. Owner-representative and pirates obviously still not able or willing to come to a conclusion, though pirates reduced ransom significantly. Difficult onion-routed ownership and therefore responsibility-confusion: Nisshin Corp.- Hyogo - JAPAN / NISSHIN SHIPPING CO., Ltd. - Tokyo-JAPAN / NISSHIN TANKERS CO. , Ltd.- Tokyo / Japan Ship Owners' P&I Association (Insurance) / VICTORIA SHIP MANAGEMENT Inc. 19th floor Nihonbashi, 1-Chome Building, 10402 Nihobashi Chuo-Ku Tokyo JAPAN / VICTORIA SHIP MANAGEMENT INC., 1418, San Marcelino Street, Manila Philippines / principal rep. SAGANA SHIPPING and compatriot manning agent SEA CAP SHIPPING, Manila / STOLT-NIELSEN - NORWAY & UK / STOLT TANKERS. Possible attempt to defraud the insurance can no longer be ruled out. The families hare appealing now to the shipping company's president H. Kurokawa in Japan to end the messed-up negotiations.

T/B MASINDRA 7 with barge ADM 1 - tension among pirates still high since 3 unsuccessful and ill-advised attempts by the Malaysian owner to fool and force the pirates failed miserably. 11 Indonesian crew feel abandoned by their government.

MT SEA PRINCESS II - Somali businessmen and owner prepared agreed ransom, but pirates still did not agree on modus to free the vessel. Crew unharmed.

MV SALDANHA - Negotiations ongoing.

S/Y SERENITY - The fast catamaran was meanwhile misused to hi-jack other vessels - 3 crew abducted inland to different locations. Rumour of one crew member having been killed could NOT be confirmed.

M/V TITAN - Negotiations ongoing, though vessel said to have been briefly taken towards CC ALABAMA stand-off site. Critical conditions for crew.

MT NIPAYIA - Negotiations ongoing

MS INDIAN OCEAN EXPLORER - Except for one, all crew members taken off the boat and kept hostage on land.

CC HANSA STAVANGER - Had almost reached Harardheere when it was briefly taken towards the CC ALABAMA stand-off site but could not reach it. DPA revealed that a planned commando raid was squashed, because the vessel did reach the pirate stronghold of Harardheere unexpectedly fast. Now held near Harardheere, there is a threat that the crew might be taken off the vessel tomorrow. Negotiations are however ongoing and apparently near conclusion.

FV AL-GHAITH - Negotiations ongoing

FV WIN FAR 161 - Taiwanese fishing vessel was involved in guiding and launching the attack on CC ALABAMA.

FV GREKO 2 and FV GREKO 4 - Arrested and presently impounded in Bossasso for illegal fishing. Release deal in discussion between Puntland government and Greek owner GRECO Ltd. - (N.B. ALL FISHING LICENCES FOR FOREIGN VESSELS HAVE BEEN REVOKED BY TFG (the new Somali Government of National Unity) - in the moment there is a fishing moratorium enacted for all Somali waters and the 200nm EEZ of Somalia concerning any foreign owned or foreign linked fishing vessels).

MV MALASPINA CASTLE - Had arrived near Eyl with her crew of 24 unharmed.

T/B BUCANEER with 2 Barges - The Italian-flagged and UAE operated tugboat was sea-jacked yesterday at 11h00 local time with 16 crew (10 Italians, 1 Croatian, 5 Romanians) in the Gulf of Aden. Taken first towards Las Korey at the Gulf of Aden coast. The owner of the 75-metre tugboat, Micoperi Marine Contractors based in the Italian city of Ravenna, said the tugboat was heading to Singapore via the Suez canal. An Italian warship is trailing the BUCCANER.

The cases of a sea-jacked Yemeni Dhow off Berbera, one Sudanese and one other merchant vessel in Ga'an at the Gulf of Aden coast as well as the Egyptian fishing vessel used as piracy-taxi are also monitored.

With the latest captures and releases now still at least 16 (17 with an unnamed sole Barge which drifted ashore, 18 with JAIKUR I whose crew is still held in Mogadishu harbour) foreign vessels with a total of not less than 269 crew members accounted for (of which 99 are confirmed to be Filipinos) are held in Somali waters and are monitored on our actual case-list, while several other cases of ships, which were observed off the coast of Somalia and have been reported or had reportedly disappeared without trace or information, are still being followed. Over 134 incidences (including attempted attacks, averted attacks and successful sea-jackings) have been recorded for 2008 with 49 fully documented, factual sea-jacking cases (for Somalia, incl. presently held ones) and the mistaken sinking of one vessel by a naval force. For 2009 the account stands at 54 averted or abandoned attacks and 16 sea-jackings on the Somali/Yemeni pirate side as well as one wrongful attack by friendly fire on the side of the naval forces. Mystery pirate mother-vessels Athena/Arena and Burum Ocean as well as not fully documented cases of absconded vessels are not listed in the sea-jack count until clarification. Several other vessels with unclear fate (also not in the actual count), who were reported missing over the last ten years in this area, are still kept on our watch-list, though in some cases it is presumed that they sunk due to bad weather or being unfit to sail. In the last four years, 22 missing ships have been traced back with different names, flags and superstructures.

Press Contacts:

ECOP-marine
East-Africa
+254-714-747090
www.ecop.info

ECOTERRA Intl.
Nairobi Node
+254-733-633-733

EA Seafarers Assistance Programme
SAP Media Officer
+254-733-385868

End of Ecoterra press release

Note
Picture: Tanit hijacked. From: http://www.24heures.ch/files/imagecache/468x312/story/67342559_0.JPG