EU navy mission Atalanta going into its 6th year

Hamburg airport proud on hamburgs Piracy background

The German parliament recently voted to extend the mandate for the EU navy mission Atalanta for another year until May 2014. Up to 1400 soldiers can be deployed under this operation. This includes the mandate for air strikes up to 2km inland, which was introduced last year.

During the debate, Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle described the “real reason” for Atalanta as “We want to help the people.” A year earlier, he was a little more blunt, when he said in an interview: “Pursuing our economic interests, including pursuing our interests in resources, must be part of our strategic planning. I am surprised that the deployment of soldiers to combat piracy, which I support, has been portrayed as morally not justifiable by some members of parliament.”

Defence Minister Thomas de Maizière pointed out another aspect of Atalanta as the EU’s first combined military involvement, when he linked it to an upcoming EU security conference in December. He also suggested that Atalanta and the NATO mission Ocean Shield should be joined.

Cannon fodder in an undeclared war

Court Report Day 100 – 17 September 2012

Three defence lawyers had, as one of them said, “the dubious honour” to give their closing address on the 100th day of the trial.

First up was the defence for the accused whose son had been kidnapped. The defence quoted from a recent article in the magazine Spiegel which said that the case could not really be tried in Germany. They then explained the situation of the accused and of his family in Somalia and pleaded for the sentence not to exceed four years.

Then the defence for one of the under-age accused spoke. He said that what the West called piracy was seen in Somalia as an act of self-defence against illegal fishing and waste dumping. The aid the West was giving to Somalia was a drop in the bucket and the illegal fishing removed more protein from the Somali diet than the aid delivered. The reputation of piracy in the West was bad because it challenged the capitalist logic of free trade. Many nations were interested in the resources around the Horn of Africa. The Swiss government had described Atalanta as an undeclared war. Was the court trying to justify Atalanta? According to the UN, the illegal fishing had caused one million Somali to flee their country. The European border agency FRONTEX would then ensure that these refugees never reached Europe. This was neocolonialism.

A relaxed judge

During the last couple of court hearings, the presiding judge Steinmetz seemed remarkably relaxed.
For months he has been pushing to bring the trial to an end. Every time the defence made a submission, he was annoyed; every delay irritated him. Then, on day 84, he finished at midday with the words “we have no programme left for today” - as if this was some sort of theatre rehearsal. And this Wednesday, the hearing lasted only one and a half hours before the judge finished and cancelled the following hearing. All this in a trial with 20 lawyers and three interpreters, some of whom travel almost a thousand kilometres for every court appearance.

Somehow, the judge does not appear to be in a hurry to bring the trial to a close any more. Some of those observing the trial wonder what prompted this change in attitude. Several possibilities come to mind. Maybe it was the release of the three juvenile defendants - the court had been criticised for keeping them in custody for so long. Or is it the fact that the German parliament is about to make a decision on expanding the Atalanta mission to go on land. Is the trial not supposed to end before that decision has been made? Or does the court need more time to prepare the verdicts – but isn't 18 months enough time?

In the meantime, some people consider applying to the Guinness Book of Records to have the trial registered as the longest running 'piracy trial' in history...

Frigates and Solidarity in the Harbour

While the German navy today proudly presented two frigates to the public in Hamburg with an 'open ship' day, a group of activists took the opportunity to alert the public to the connection between these frigates, the Atalanta mission, European strategic interests and the current 'piracy' trial. The activists handed out leaflets and unfolded a banner demanding the release of the ten accused Somali.

A War Without Declaration

EU-NAVFOR (European Navy Forces) - 'Mission Atalanta': A War Without Declaration

The defendants in the so-called 'Pirate Trial' were, on 5th April 2010, attacked on the German containership Taipan by a Dutch warship, the Tromp. Heavy weapons were used and the defendants were held captive for a week on board thr Tromp as they were transported to Mogadischu. During this time highly questionable interrogations, described later as just harmless 'conversations', took place. The person who conducted the interrogations later admitted to being an officer of the Dutch Naval Intelligence. And the former captain of the Tromp received a medal for his 'special services to the navy'.