A mercenary solution to Somali piracy

COULD 2011 see the return of the days when seaborne piracy was a very risky profession? The failure of various navies to restrict the flourishing business of Somali buccaneers is forcing the maritime community to try a new approach. Mercenaries—or as they prefer to be called, “private security organisations”—may finally play a helping role.
The hottest initiative comes from an alliance of insurance companies, led by Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group (JLT), who are apparently proposing the creation of a “private navy” under a scheme called the Convoy Escort Programme (CEP). A heavily armed, 150-strong security team on patrol boats would escort merchant vessels through the dangerous waters off  Somalia and far out into the Indian Ocean.Read More