Why doesn't the UN do something about the pirates in Somalia?

[westbroc90]

Maritime law forbids non-military ships from carrying weapons to defend themselves. Warships stand by and watch while people are kidnapped. Countries who's citizens are being held hostage don't use military force to free them and there are no reprisals even when hostages are murdered.

But military powers are all too eager to invade Iraq, Afghanistan and now they are chest beating about Libya where their own citizens are not being threatened.

Why don't they concentrate on taking care of their own citizens?

[gwynethpaltrow8]

Yeah, the Rule of Law can be a real pain in the neck. Blame it on the Romans and their wacked out emphasis of Law.

But my question is why doesn't the U.S. Navy and its much vaunted SEAL teams do something? SEALS specialize in ambushes, so why not deploy "X-CRAFT" as was done by the British in WWII against U-Boats to ambush the pirates??

[alleyne]

The only thing the UN does is sanctions..nothing else. They do appoint "peace keeping missions", I have never heard of them being carried out at sea or around boats. NATO on the other hand can actually do something about it.

HMS Cumberland, on anti-piracy patrol as part of a Nato maritime force, detected the dhow which was towing a skiff, and identified it as a vessel which had been involved in an attack on the Danish-registered MV Powerful earlier yesterday. The pirates had opened fire on the cargo boat with assault rifles.

Under rules of engagement which allows the Royal Navy to intervene when pirates are positively identified, the commandos were dispatched from the frigate in rigid-raider craft and sped towards the pirates’ dhow. The Ministry of Defence said the Marines circled the pirates’ boat to try and persuade them to stop.

[delron72]

Becuase the UN has no soldiers.

They have member nations which contribute soldiers, such as the current peace keepers in Somalia.


How exactly is the UN supposed to stop armed private individuals from hijacking ships on the open sea? Are the various powers supposed to just stop every ship in the area, if the people are brown? The Naval presence in the area hasn't ended the piracy, it has just forced it further off shore, as the locations o these recent incidents prove.

[dennie18]

The pirates operate in the Indian Ocean and they travel on small boats. It will be like looking for a grain of sand on a basketball court.

UN doesn't have their own navy either. US has a naval presence there but they can't be everywhere.

[lazaro94]

The pirates operate in the Indian Ocean and they travel on small boats. It will be like looking for a grain of sand on a basketball court.

UN doesn't have their own navy either. US has a naval presence there but they can't be everywhere.

Because the UN is useless non government without any power except that of its member nations.

[forde]

If you want to stop the pirates, do it your self