Mark Wright’s Blog

For the past week, I have been following the drama as the Captain of a cargo ship was held hostage in a lifeboat in the Indian Ocean.  Captain Richard Phillips was safely rescued after U.S. Navy snipers killed the three Somali pirates who were holding him hostage. 

The drama unfolded when Somali pirates took over the US flagged Maersk Alabama.  The crew was able to take back the ship but the captain was taken hostage by three pirates who boarded one of the ship’s lifeboats. 

This has been one of the first times, a Somali pirate attack has been thwarted.  Over the past year, pirates have attacked numerous ships, holding the crew and cargo ransom.  In most cases, the ransom is paid, with the amounts ranging in the millions of dollars. 

When people think of pirates, they think of Blackbead, Captain Hook or Captain Jack Sparrow of The Pirates of the Caribbean movies.  However, these pirates have very little charm.  The Somali pirates have vowed revenge. 

Every morning when I come to work, I look out the window of one of our conference rooms and see all of the ships entering and exiting the harbor and wonder if one day they might be captured by the pirates.  As a former crewmember of a navy ship, I have been in the region where this is taking place.

The successful rescue of Phillips and the Maersk Alabama will not stop the pirates.  The only thing that will stop them is a continued show of force.  While it would be near impossible to watch over every ship, it is important to send a clear message to these thugs that this sort of action will not be tolerated any longer.  These terrorists need to be brought to justice.