Alphonce Shiundu
8 October 2008
Nairobi — Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetang'ula has called for the use of force to secure the arms seized by Somalia pirates a fortnight ago.
His remarks echo a United Nations Security Council resolution that directs naval vessels and military aircraft to use "all necessary means " to stamp out piracy.
Mr Wetang'ula said the Kenya Government will now fight the pirates "anywhere and everywhere " to keep the high seas safe.
The resolution only applies to pirates off Somalia, whose 1,880-mile coastline is the longest in Africa and near key shipping routes that connect the Indian Ocean with the Red Sea.
Addressing a news conference at his office, Mr Wetang'ula insisted that ransom should not be paid, as doing so would empower the pirates.
"The more you pay, the more you empower them," the minister said.
It is estimated that the pirates have made between US$30-50 million from ransom payments over the last two years.
They have been demanding US$20 million to release the ship that was hijacked with arms from Ukraine en-route to the Mombasa port.
Similarly, Mr Wetang'ula disclosed that the Kenya Navy would start patrols on Somalia's territorial waters to secure the Indian Ocean Coast of the criminals.
He termed the pirates as "part of an organised international criminal syndicate " that would have grave consequences on the maritime trade route to the Mombasa port.
"There is a real risk of merchant ship owners shunning the region," Mr Wetangula said.
But even as he pushed for the use of force to end the stand-off over the seized cargo, the minister could not clarify the extent of the operation.
However, he insisted that the UN resolution gave "extra-territorial powers " but he was hard-pressed to explain if this meant an invasion into the Somalia mainland to pursue the pirates.
On the other hand, Somalia 's Foreign Affairs minister Ali Ahmed Jama called for caution before force is applied.
Mr Jama said that even though the threat "was serious and unacceptable " the safety of the crew that is being held hostage should be taken into consideration.
"It is an extremely delicate situation that would be difficult to resolve," Mr Jama said.
At the same time, Mr Wetangula refuted media reports that the arms were destined for Southern Sudan.
He termed the report as "unhelpful speculation " that is intent on contradicting the Government's position.
On Tuesday, the British Broadcasting Corporation reported that the weapons were headed to Southern Sudan as per the freight manifests which had the acronym "GOSS. " The BBC had interpreted the acronym to mean "Government of Southern Sudan, " but Mr Wetangula said it stood for "General Ordinance Supply and Security. " "You cannot take initials and apply them narrowly... the Government is not a broker, " he said.
Mr Wetang'ula maintained that the information on the bill of lading was "correct. " He however, ruled out the release of contracts pertaining to the arms for public scrutiny.
Mr Wetang'ula said that if evidence emerges that shows otherwise, then it will be dealt with by the government.
"These are security matters... no government worth its salt will parade security contracts to the media," he said.
Since the arms were captured by the pirates, speculation has been rife that the arms were headed to Southern Sudan, although both the Kenya and South Sudan Governments have denied the reports.
A spokesman for the East African chapter of the Seafarers Assistance Programme Andrew Mwangura, who was the first to disclose that the arms were actually destined for Southern Sudan, was arrested last week and charged. But was released on bond on Tuesday.
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