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{
    "id": 74180,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/74180/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 172,
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    "content": "to deploy assets to counter the menace both on land and at sea. Only recently, our navy shot dead three pirates who mistook a Kenya Navy vessel for a merchant ship and attacked it in Kilifi waters. I must commend our forces for the work they are doing. We assure them of our full support and the Government will do whatever it takes to protect our waters and safeguard our trade in the rest of the world. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, we are reaping the results of many years of neglect of what is going on in Somalia. Piracy goes hand in hand with poverty and a weak or non- existent government, both of which are found in plenty in Somalia. We are witnessing the culmination of years of inattention, desperation and lawlessness in an area bordering that vital shipping route. As a Government, we have stood for a coordinated approach to those growing problems. Since 2008, we have signed agreements with the United Kingdom, the United States of America, the European Union, Denmark, China and Canada to apprehend piracy suspects and have them transferred to Kenya for prosecution. Those agreements were concluded within the framework of various UN Security Council Resolutions that obligate the international community to collaborate in fighting piracy. However, there has been little or no corresponding complementary obligation on the other parties to those agreements. As a Government, we are appealing to the international community to collaborate fully on this matter in line with the UN recommendations. We need accelerated efforts to partner with shipping states, original coastal states and major ports’ states to create a more effective international legal and enforcement network. We are demanding joint efforts at economic rehabilitation and creation of alternative livelihoods, including development and rehabilitation of coastal fisheries. We need to jointly embark on creation of opportunities for the youth, not only in Somalia, but along our shared water boundaries. The youth in the region need greater incentives not to succumb to the lure of the pirate economy. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the Seychelles, Tanzania and Mauritius recently joined a collaborative arrangement which we signed earlier for receiving piracy suspects. However, they have limited capacity compared to Kenya. This has left Kenya to receive the bulk of the suspects. We, however, note with some relief that on 26th July, 2010, the Supreme Court of Seychelles sentenced 11 Somali pirates to ten years imprisonment for attempting to seize a coast guard boat last December. The ruling was the first of its kind in that country and was a big boost to the war on pirates. In contrast, however, in the recent case of Mahamoud Mohamed Dadahashi and eight others, the High Court of Kenya, while sitting in Mombasa, ruled in favour of suspected pirates. The ruling was quite a big blow to our efforts to secure our waters and safeguard our economy. The office of the Public Prosecutor is appealing against the ruling and it is our hope that the appeal succeeds to remedy this anomaly. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, we fully welcome the recently passed UN Security Council Resolution No.1918 of 2010 fronted by Russia, which recognizes the burden Kenya carries. We also welcome Resolution No.1950 which calls on States to take necessary domestic measures to ensure successful prosecution of persons suspected of piracy within their jurisdiction. We are seeking to convene a meeting early next year with all partner States with a view to seeking a complete implementation of the recommendations presented by the UN Secretary General in regard to Resolution"
}