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Somalia jails Britons, American over pirate ransom

ludahai

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article

MOGADISHU (Reuters) – A Somali court has jailed three Britons and an American for illegally bringing in millions of dollars in ransom for pirates, but the judge suggested the convicts could buy their freedom.

So let me get this straight, it is illegal to bring money in to ransom freedom for pirates, but you can ransom your own freedom from the Somali Transitional Authority??? Perhaps it is about time to just go in, guns a blazing, get rid of them all and start over... :peace
 
Perhaps it is about time to just go in, guns a blazing,

Yeah we tried that once...it didn't work so well.

ludahai said:
get rid of them all and start over... :peace

Get rid of who? The Transitional Authority controls maybe a few square blocks of Mogadishu. Somalia isn't going to suddenly become a peaceful, orderly, un-corrupt country regardless of what actions we take.
 
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IMO, it is no surprise to see the illegitimate rump "government" in Somalia trying to profit from illicit activities. Somalia remains a fractured society in which opposing factions and other elements are seeking to achieve power/profit from whatever means they can.

On a separate issue, I believe any individuals bringing/paying ransom should face significant penalties. Such activity only rewards pirate activity and creates incentives for more of it. In the absence of a legitimate government in Somalia--and the Transitional Authority with its roots in Djibouti is not such an entity even if many in the international community, including Somalia's African neighbors, maintain such a pretense--I believe the British and U.S. governments should prosecute the individuals involved.
 
Why did they try to personally handle this situation by flying in the money quietly and alone? Did they have sanction and support from their respective governments? (IE: Briton, US, Kenya, unnamed 4th)

Just what is this cargo that they were willing to risk imprisonment for over extreme privacy?
 
article



So let me get this straight, it is illegal to bring money in to ransom freedom for pirates, but you can ransom your own freedom from the Somali Transitional Authority??? Perhaps it is about time to just go in, guns a blazing, get rid of them all and start over... :peace

I can understand punishing them for trying to bring ransoms money for pirates. After all every time someone pays a ransom it encourages the pirates to kidnap and extort more people thus furthering endangering the lives of other people. Pirates don't kidnap and extort people because its a hobby, they do it because people keep paying ransoms. As a matter of fact it should be a punishable crime everywhere to pay ransoms. That said it is despicable for a legal system to extort money,they are no better than the pirates.If they really believed that this should be a crime they shouldn't be extorting money.
 
Why did they try to personally handle this situation by flying in the money quietly and alone?

Insurance premiums. Reporting acts of piracy means their premiums go up.

Just what is this cargo that they were willing to risk imprisonment for over extreme privacy?

I'm willing to bet that it's not the cargo, it's the personnel. They pay ransoms to avoid lawsuits.
 
Gee, I wonder why a particular country might be annoyed by people handing over large sums of money to criminals...
 
Yeah we tried that once...it didn't work so well.

We were in there once, but it was hardly "guns a blazing"

Get rid of who? The Transitional Authority controls maybe a few square blocks of Mogadishu. Somalia isn't going to suddenly become a peaceful, orderly, un-corrupt country regardless of what actions we take.

Get rid of them all... carpet bomb the whole godforsaken country and start all over... the Somali are hopeless, truly hopeless... [/somewhat tongue in cheek, though only somewhat]
 
But then that government will accept a sum to let them go. Isn't that just the same with a legal sugar coating over it???

You don't think it has anything to do with a government not being happy with someone handing over cash to pirates, which both funds and encourages this behavior?
 
You don't think it has anything to do with a government not being happy with someone handing over cash to pirates, which both funds and encourages this behavior?

Throw them in jail, fine... but don't say you will free them if they pay money... that makes the "government" no better than the pirates...
 
Can we please stop referring to them as "the Somali government"? They're a random band of thugs who the US likes to pretend is the government. Somalia doesn't have a government. Do we even know if this "judge" has any connection whatsoever with the "president," or if they even recognize each other's authority? All I see in the article is someone calling himself a judge asked for a bribe, and the guy that the US pretends is the president stopped the prisoners from being moved from the airport.
 
Can we please stop referring to them as "the Somali government"? They're a random band of thugs who the US likes to pretend is the government. Somalia doesn't have a government. Do we even know if this "judge" has any connection whatsoever with the "president," or if they even recognize each other's authority? All I see in the article is someone calling himself a judge asked for a bribe, and the guy that the US pretends is the president stopped the prisoners from being moved from the airport.

ok, the "transitional authority" then...
 
ok, the "transitional authority" then...

As far as I know, Transitional Authority just refers to the "president" and his cronies. Who knows if this judge is even part of that circle, or if he's just some random doofus who claims to be a judge.
 
As far as I know, Transitional Authority just refers to the "president" and his cronies. Who knows if this judge is even part of that circle, or if he's just some random doofus who claims to be a judge.

The article cited in the OP refers to the Somali Government, which is recognized as being the Transitional Authority, though it has little to no authority outside of Mogadishu...
 
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