Pirates & Privateers: John J. Pitney, Jr.'s and John-Clark Levin's Books

The idea of private navies that fight pirates isn’t a new one. It traces back to the British East India Company (EIC), whose armed merchantmen fight against pirates in the Indian Ocean. Some of the issues the EIC faced are still problematic today, and the re-emergence of private navies is an outgrowth of today’s maritime piracy, especially off Somalia and in the Gulf of Guinea. The role of these privately operated forces is defensive, to escort and protect merchant shipping and the men and women who sail aboard those vessels. They emerge because maritime shipping requires a more cost-effective means of combating piracy than the joint operations conducted by national navies that currently patrol these dangerous waters. Yet legal and operational obstacles still need to be overcome before private navies will be a viable means to curb piracy. This is what the authors explore in this book. As they write in their introduction:

For the first time in modern history, civilian contractors now operate armed escorts with the dedicated purpose of combat – by definition, private warships. These vessels accompany vulnerable merchant ships in pirate-threatened waters, with orders to use lethal force against attackers, but do so independently of any military command structure. And although no single company operates a navy-sized force, private escorts collectively account for about as many vessels in an anti-piracy role as the world’s combined navies. (1)

The authors have a dual purpose for writing this book. They want readers to understand “the historical origins, current state, and future prospects of this fast-changing sector of the private security industry,” as well as to show what those who enact laws and create policy will need to address in the future. (2) Hopefully, this volume “will serve as a starting point for discussion about the challenges, opportunities, and implications of naval privatization. If the stakeholders . . . can have a shared foundation on these issues, they will be more effective in finding solutions – and more effective at facing the maritime security threats . . . to come.” (229)

To that end Pitney and Levin divide the book’s content into ten chapters.

1. Introduction
2. Historical Lessons

The East India Company’s Private Navy
Merchant Raiders during the World Wars
Lessons to Be Learned

3. The Somali Piracy Epidemic

Collapse and Civil War
Slide into Piracy
The Epidemic Begins
The Problem Worsens
The Tide Turns

4. Current and Proposed Forces

Blackwater
Gulf of Aden Group Transits
Current Private Naval Companies
Convoy Escort Programme
Typhon
Key Incidents

5. Economic Considerations

Savings and Costs of Using Private Security
The Costs of Piracy
Prospects for Public Funding

6. Legal and Regulatory Issues

Legitimacy
Licensing and Regulation
Immunities and Obligations
Territorial Laws
Jurisdiction
Civil Liability

7. Operational and Tactical Challenges

The Pirate Threat
Best Management Practices and Hardening
Embarked Guards
Regular Navies
The Role of Private Navies
Logistical Issues
Rules for the Use of Force

8. Costs, Benefits, and Results

9. Prospects and Implications

Maritime Security off the Horn of Africa
Security on Land in Somalia
Maritime Security off West Africa
Maritime Security in Other Piracy-Affected Waters
Legal Developments
Proposed Private Naval Forces
Anti-Terrorism Operations
Coastguard Functions in the Developing World
Resource Extraction
Potential Functions in the Developed World
Causes for Concern
The Far Future

10. Conclusion

Each chapter begins with a brief introduction to set the stage for the contents to come, while notes are included at the end. These citations provide readers with resources where additional information can be found. A comprehensive bibliography and index are also included.

Private Anti-Piracy Navies does an excellent job showcasing and explaining the complexity of the issues facing these private entities, yet the authors accomplish this in an interesting and highly readable narrative that grabs the reader’s attention. How familiar one may be with piracy and the use of private navies to combat it are mute, for the authors clearly encapsulate the history, realities, and problems without lecturing or talking down to readers. Although the price is a bit steep, this book provides an illuminating, thought-provoking examination on the background and issues and is well worth the read.