“hooliganism”.

Russia softens charges against Greenpeace activists from piracy to hooliganism

Published time: October 23, 2013 16:37
Edited time: October 23, 2013 19:02

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Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise (RIA Novosti / Sergey Eshenko)

Russia’s Investigative Committee has stated that the charges against the Greenpeace activists from the Arctic Sunrise have been softened from “piracy” to “hooliganism”.

"The actions of those involved in the criminal case have been reclassified to the charge of hooliganism," the spokesman for the Investigative Committee, Vladimir Markin, told the RIA Novosti news agency.  

Greenpeace has called the new Russian charge of hooliganism for its arctic protest “wildly disproportionate” and said that both the charges of piracy and hooliganism “bear no relation to reality.”

“The Arctic 30 are no more hooligans than they were pirates. This is still a wildly disproportionate charge that carries up to seven years in jail. It represents nothing less than an assault on the very principle of peaceful protest,” the organization said in a statement published on its website. “We will contest the trumped up charge of hooliganism as strongly as we contested the piracy allegations,” the group said. 

All 30 Arctic Sunrise crewmembers from 18 different countries were charged with piracy at the beginning of October, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison. The hooliganism charge carries a maximum penalty of 7 years. 

The activists were arrested following their protest at Gazprom’s Prirazlomnaya oil platform in the Barents Sea on September, 18. They are currently being held in pre-trial detention in the city of Murmansk, northern Russia. 

The prosecution insisted Greenpeace activists “posed a real threat” to employees on the rig. 

Greenpeace denies the accusations saying that it did not create any kind of threat to the safety of the platform’s personnel, as the activists had nothing but banners and ropes with them. 

Another argument against the piracy charges was that the Arctic Sunrise ship did not breach the 500-meter zone around the platform, with Greenpeace adding that satellite data proves their statement. 

On Oct. 4, the Netherlands filed a lawsuit against Russia in an international maritime court in a bid to win the release of the Dutch-registered Greenpeace vessel Arctic Sunrise and its 30 crewmembers.  

In response, Russia’s Foreign Ministry criticized the Dutch authorities for not intervening in the situation earlier, as “over the last year and a half the Russian side made repeated attempts” to draw the attention of the Dutch government to “the vessel’s illegal activities.” 

On Monday, the Dutch government asked the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to order Russia to free all the Greenpeace ship crewmembers, but Moscow dismissed the request sent to the Hamburg-based tribunal. It also refused to take part in the proceedings. 

However, Moscow remains “open to the settlement” of the situation around the case. 

The Greenpeace activists’ detention in Russia has sparked a massive reaction among the group’s supporters and human rights organizations. Greenpeace started the “Free the Arctic 30” campaign, over 1.5 million people across the globe have sent letters to Russian embassies demanding their release. 

Somali piracy: Armed guards to protect UK ships

Use of armed guards would be restricted to voyages through particular waters in affected areas

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Related Stories

• UN sanctions anti-piracy guards
• The losing battle against Somali piracy
• 
  

Ships sailing under a British flag will be able to carry armed guards to protect them from pirates, the prime minister has announced.

David Cameron says he wants to combat the risks to shipping off the coast of Somalia, where 49 of the world's 53 hijackings last year took place.

No ship carrying armed security has yet been hijacked, the government claims.

However, allowing ships to carry armed guards may fall foul of laws in other countries, such as South Africa.

Many British-registered ships already illegally carry armed guards because companies feel they have no alternative.

Shoot to kill?

Mr Cameron revealed he wanted to make the practice legal after talks in Australia with Commonwealth leaders from the region over the escalating problem faced in waters off their shores.

Asked if he was comfortable with giving private security operatives the right to "shoot to kill" if necessary, Mr Cameron told BBC1's Andrew Marr Show: "We have to make choices.

"Frankly, the extent of the hijack and ransom of ships round the Horn of Africa is a complete stain on our world.

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"The fact that a bunch of pirates in Somalia are managing to hold to ransom the rest of the world and our trading system is a complete insult and the rest of the world needs to come together with much more vigour."

France and Spain provide so-called military vessel protection detachments, while Italy is planning a similar measure.

However, in July, Foreign Office Minister Henry Bellingham said limited resources in the light of current military commitments could not allow Royal Marines to do the same.

Under the plans, the Home Secretary will be given the power to license vessels to carry armed security, including automatic weapons, currently prohibited under firearms laws.

Targeting assets

Officials said up to 200 could take up the offer, which would only apply for voyages through particular waters in the affected region.

Other counter-piracy measures being taken include offering support from Treasury officials to Kenya to help its officials track down pirates' assets.

Mr Cameron also said help could be given to countries such as The Seychelles and Mauritius who were acting to bring pirates to court and imprison them.

• UN sanctions anti-piracy guards 21 MAY 2011, AFRICA
• The losing battle against Somali piracy 10 FEBRUARY 2011, AFRICA
• Q&A: What do you do with a captured pirate? 25 JANUARY 2011, AFRICA

Somali elders sought on Saturday to mediate between the U.S. navy and pirates demanding $2 million (1.4 million pounds) and safe passage in exchange f

Reuters) - Somali elders sought on Saturday to mediate between the U.S. navy and pirates demanding $2 million (1.4 million pounds) and safe passage in exchange for the release of an American captain they are holding on a lifeboat in the Indian Ocean.

Pirates preying on the strategic shipping lanes of the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean are holding about 260 hostages.

Following are the latest developments related to the piracy off the coast of Somalia.

April 11 - Pirates on a German ship with 24 foreign hostages returned to the Somali coast after failing to find fellow pirates who are holding American ship captain Richard Phillips captive adrift in a lifeboat in the Indian Ocean with U.S. naval ships closing in.

- Pirates seized a U.S.-owned and Italian-flagged tugboat with 16 crew on board, 10 of them Italian nationals.

- Pirates attacked a 26,000-tonne, Panama-flagged bulk carrier, the MV Anatolia, in the Gulf of Aden but were beaten back by sailors spraying them with water hoses.

April 10 - A French hostage was killed, but his wife, his son and another French couple were freed when French special forces attacked pirates who had seized their yacht off Somalia. Two of the pirates were shot dead.

- Pirates released the Norwegian-owned tanker MT Bow Asir, which was taken at the end of March. The 27-member crew were unharmed. The 23-tonne chemical tanker's operator declined to say whether a ransom was paid, though pirate sources said $2.4 million changed hands.

April 9 - A Spanish warship intercepted a small boat that had pursued a Panama-flagged merchant vessel in the Gulf of Aden. Spanish forces boarded the small boat and let the crew go after checking their registration papers.

(Compiled by the World Des

the wreck of the barque Libelle

Wreck of the Libelle

Wake Island first received international attention with the wreck of the barque Libelle. On the night of March 4, 1866, the 650 ton Libelle, of Bremen, Germany, struck the eastern reef of Wake Island during a gale. Commanded by Captain Tobias, the ship was en route from San Francisco to Hong Kong. Among its passengers were opera singer Anna Bishop (ex wife of the celebrated French harpist Nicolas Bochsa), her husband Martin Schultz (a New York diamond merchant), and three other members of an English opera troupe.

After 21 days on Wake, the 30 stranded passengers and crewmen sailed in a longboat and the gig for the then Spanish island of Guam. The longboat, containing the opera troupe, Mr. Schultz and other passengers, reached Guam April on 8. Unfortunately, the gig, commanded by the captain, was lost at sea. Captain Tobias had buried valuable cargo on Wake, including 1,000 flasks (34,500 kg) of mercury, as well as coins and precious stones worth about US$150,000. At least five ships conducted salvage operations for its recovery. The plight of the Libelle's passengers and the buried cargo was reported by newspapers around the world.

European discovery and exploration

Wake Island as depicted by the United States Exploring Expedition, drawn by Alfred Thomas Agate

On October 20, 1568, Álvaro de Mendaña de Neyra, a Spanish explorer with two ships, Los Reyes and Todos Santos, discovered "a low barren island, judged to be eight leagues in circumference", to which he gave the name of "San Francisco". The island was eventually named for Captain William Wake, master of the British trading schooner, Prince William Henry, who visited in 1796.^[14]

Jeremiah N. Reynolds' 1828 report to the US House of Representatives describes Capt. Edward Gardner's discovery of a 25-mile (40 km) long island situated at 19°15' N, 166°32' E, with a reef at the eastern edge when he was captain of the Bellona in 1823. The island was "covered with wood, having a very green and rural appearance" and, Reynolds concluded, was probably Wake Island. It was placed on charts by John Arrowsmith.^[15]

On December 20, 1840, the United States Exploring Expedition, commanded by Commodore Charles Wilkes of the U.S. Navy, landed on Wake and surveyed the island. Wilkes described the atoll as "a low coral one, of triangular form and eight feet above the surface. It has a large lagoon in the centre, which was well filled with fish of a variety of species among these were some fine mullet." He also noted that Wake had no fresh water but was covered with shrubs, "the most abundant of which was the tournefortia." The expedition's naturalist, Titian Peale, collected many new specimens, including an egg from a short-tailed albatross and various marine life specimens

The 1595-1596 Voyage

A much larger and costlier expedition had been planned by the early 1590s, after Mendaña had spent years courting favour in Madrid and Lima. Four ships and 378 men, women and children were to establish a colony in the Solomon Islands. Again, the leaders of this voyage had “widely divergent personalities.” ^[11] Mendaña was again in command, accompanied by his wife Doña Isabel Barreto, her three brothers and a sister. Chief Pilot was to be a young Portuguese navigator in Spanish service, Pedro Fernández de Quirós. An argumentative old soldier, Pedro Merino Manrique was chosen as camp master. Manrique caused disputes before the fleet had even departed.

The four ships, San Geronimo (the Capitana), the Santa Isabel (the Almiranta), the smaller frigate Santa Catalina and the galiot San Felipe left Callao on 9 April 1595. Spirits were high in the first month, fifteen marriages being celebrated.^[12] Mendaña had Quirós prepare charts for his Captains that only showed Peru and the Solomon Islands.^[13]

On 21 July 1595 the ships reached the Marquesas Islands, (named for the wife of the then viceroy of Peru, García Hurtado de Mendoza, 5th Marquis of Cañete) to be met by four hundred people in canoes. Although the Spaniards admired their “graceful shape” and “almost white” complexion, the relationship again descended into violence. When the expedition left two weeks later, Quirós estimated 200 Marquesans had been killed ^[14]

Despite Mendaña’s confidence that the Solomon Islands were nearby, it was not until 8 September that they sighted land again, this time the island of Nendo, which they named "Santa Cruz".^[15] The Santa Isabel had disappeared, however, and despite searches by the two smaller vessels, it could not be found.^[16] Arriving at what is now Graciosa Bay, a settlement was commenced. Relations with local islanders and their chief Malope started well, with food provided and assistance in constructing buildings. However, morale amongst the Spanish was low and sickness (almost certainly malaria) was rife. Manrique was murdered at the orders of, and in front of Mendaña, and shortly afterwards, the generous Malope was killed by soldiers. Relations with the Islanders soon descended again into the all too familiar cycle of violence.

Wracked by internal divisions and an increasing death toll, internal bickering increased and the settlement began to fall apart. Mendaña himself died on 18 October 1595, leaving his wife as heir and Governor, her brother Lorenzo, Captain-General. On 30 October, the decision was made to abandon the settlement. When the three ships departed on 18 November 1595, forty-seven people had died in the space of one month ^[17]

Pedro Fernández de Quirós is generally credited with bringing the San Geronimo safely into the Philippines without the aid of charts, arriving in Manila Bay on 11 February 1596. Over fifty people died on the twelve week voyage from Santa Cruz, in part due to Dona Isabel’s refusal to share out her private store of food and water.^[18] The frigate (carrying Mendaña's body) disappeared during the voyage, while the galiot San Felipe limped in to the southern end of Mindanao several days later.

Blackbeard captured a French slaver known as La Concorde in 1717 and renamed it Queen Anne's Revenge. He captained the ship until it ran aground, perhaps intentionally, at Beaufort Inlet in June 1718. (For more on Blackbeard, see sidebar.)

Some accounts at the time suggested that Blackbeard wanted to break up his crew of some 300 to 400 men—and keep the choicest booty for himself.

The ship is still officially classified as "believed to be" the QAR. But mounting evidence suggests to many that the wreck is that of Blackbeard's ship.

"It's not like CSI," said Cheryl Ward, a Florida State University maritime archaeologist not involved in the project. "In the real world nobody solves anything in a 24-hour period. We may never get a definitive answer, but I think that they've got a very good case for this being the Queen Anne's Revenge. I certainly know of nothing they've found to suggest that it can't be."

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What's This? SHARE Digg StumbleUpon Reddit RELATED STORIES Blackbeard: Pirate Terror at Sea "Blackbeard's Ship" Wreck to Get Protection From Currents, Hurricanes "Blackbeard's Ship" Yields New Clues to Pirate Mystery A copper-alloy sword guard was recently found in a shipwreck thought to be Blackbeard's Queen Anne's Revenge, archaeologists said in March 2009. The guard would have sat between the sword's steel blade and its wooden handle. An x-ray of the sword guard (bottom) shows a small hole where a decorative chain might have been attached. Infamous pirate Blackbeard grounded his ship while trying to enter the harbor of Beaufort, North Carolina in 1718.

Somali pirates cannot be stopped by force

8 December 2010 Last updated at 10:36

EU Force: Somali pirates cannot be stopped by force

International naval forces have not stopped pirates from expanding their area of operation

Continue reading the main story

PIRACY CRISIS

• Growing risk
• Q&A: Prosecuting pirates
• Spotlight on 'guns for hire'
• Somali piracy: Global map

Pirates operating off the Somali coast will not be defeated by force alone, a top European naval officer says.

"It is arguable how much of a deterrent effect counter-piracy forces are having," Thomas Ernst from the EU's anti-piracy task force Navfor said.

More should be done to stop the money flow to pirate gangs and to target their leaders, he added.

International naval forces have so far stopped 120 pirate attacks this year, compared with 21 in 2009.

Somali pirates have "developed their capabilities and now have influence over a vast area", said Mr Ernst, who is Navfor's deputy operations commander.

The presence of international forces off the Somali coast and in the Gulf of Aden has pushed pirates further afield, where they hijack larger vessels.

Recently, pirates have operated as far south as Tanzania and Madagascar, with the easternmost attack just short of the southern Indian coast on 5 December.

"The rewards from piracy continue to outweigh the risks," Mr Ernst said.

He criticised that a weak legal system means that "the chances of getting caught are relatively low and the probability of being tried is even smaller".

Counter-piracy efforts should include support for the Somali government to improve the country's prison system, Mr Ernst said.

Of the 400 pirates captured by Navfor this year, only 15 are to stand trial, he added.

Around 470 seafarers aee currently being held hostage by Somali pirates.

More on This Story

PIRACY CRISIS

BACKGROUND

• Growing risk

  EU navies warn Somali piracy may enter deadly new phase

  ---

• Q&A: Prosecuting pirates

• Spotlight on 'guns for hire'

• Somali piracy: Global map

• Postcard from pirate capital

• Inside story of Somali pirate attack

• Chasing the piracy money trail

• Q&A: Somali piracy

VIDEO AND AUDIO

• How to counter a pirate attack Watch

  Experts reveal how to ward off pirates

Related stories

• Bangladeshi ship heads to Somalia 06 DECEMBER 2010, SOUTH ASIA
• Somali pirates get record ransom 06 NOVEMBER 2010, AFRICA
• British pair freed from pirates 14 NOVEMBER 2010, UK
• 'Pirate' shot as attack repelled 24 MARCH 2010, AFRICA

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Pirates seize second UK-flagged vessel

Pirates seize second UK-flagged vessel in days

A UK-flagged cargo ship with 25 crew has been seized by pirates off Somalia, media reports say.

The Asian Glory was taken 620 miles (1,000km) off the Horn of Africa nation's coast, the Bulgarian foreign ministry said.

The vessel, which has a multi-national crew, is the second UK-flagged ship hijacked in days, after chemical tanker the St James Park was seized on Monday.

The waters around Somalia are among the most dangerous in the world.

As well as eight Bulgarians, the other nationalities making up the Asian Glory's crew are said to include Ukrainians, Romanians and Indians.

British officials said there were no UK nationals on board the vessel.

The exact time and location of the hijacking are not yet clear.

The 13,000-tonne ship was reportedly transporting cars from Singapore to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.

It is estimated the ship could take up to three days to reach the Somali coast, from where pirates usually hold ransom talks.

The St James Park, which has 26 crew from nine different countries, is currently anchored off the Somali coast, where negotiations for its release are expected to start.

Correspondents say the upsurge in piracy in the region is a consequence of the failure to find a solution to Somalia's continuing political disarray.

pirates tif

Clashes rock Somali pirate port

Pirates say they fear the clan conflict may affect their activities at sea

Overnight gun-battles between rival clans in a pirate stronghold on the coast of Somalia have left at least 17 dead and 30 injured, reports say.

Local residents in Haradheere fled as fighting, reportedly over land and the alleged rape of a woman, intensified.

Pirates who operate in the area, a port off the shipping lanes linking Europe to Asia, said they were worried the conflict could affect their activities.

Somalia, torn by civil war since 1991, lacks an effective central government.

"The two clans are fighting over land and a girl who was raped in the forest," a local man, Farah Aden, told Reuters news agency.

"Unfortunately, the battles spread into town. Fighting is going on fiercely."

A pirate, who gave his name as Mohammed, told Reuters that those involved in piracy around the port were concerned that their activities would be damaged.

"We are all members of these two clans, and we are worried that this fight might end up being taken out on to the ocean," he said

pirates Somalia

Turkish ship seized off Somalia

Somali piracy has become a major international issue

A Turkish cargo ship with 23 crew on board has been seized by pirates off the coast of Somalia.

Istanbul-based Horizon Shipping said pirates in speed boats had surrounded the Horizon I vessel in the Gulf of Aden at about 0530 GMT.

Three attackers managed to board the tanker, which was heading from Saudi Arabia to Jordan, the firm said.

Maritime officials believe pirates in Somalia are now holding 12 ships, with about 200 crew, for ransom.

See map of the worldwide effects of piracy

The country has been without a functioning central government since 1991, allowing pirates to operate almost uninhibited in one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.

In this season it is hard to take ships because monsoon winds make the seas rough. No-one expected attacks at this time Negotiator Andrew Mwangura Postcard from Somali pirate capital

Omer Ozgur, from Horizon Shipping, said the Horizon I was continuing on its course despite the hijack.

The pirates have not yet issued any demands or contacted the firm.

Andrew Mwangura, of the East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme, which works to free ships, said the attack came as a surprise.

"In this season it is hard to take ships because monsoon winds make the seas rough. No-one expected attacks at this time," he told Reuters news agency.

Earlier, Nato spokesman Commander Chris Davies told the BBC's Network Africa programme that pirates in the Gulf of Aden were having less success this year compared with last year.

But he said Nato, which has an anti-piracy task force off the Horn of Africa, wanted the legal apparatus in place in Africa to deal with the pirates if they were caught.

"If we capture the pirates we're not looking to take them all the way back to, say, America or Turkey," he said.

Earlier in June the EU, which co-operates with Nato in the region, agreed to extend its anti-piracy operation there until the end of 2010.

Two dozen ships from European Union nations, including Britain, France, Germany and Italy, patrol an area of about two million square miles.