Proceedings Of The Marine

SPR 2012

Proceedings magazine is a communication tool for the Coast Guard's Marine Safety & Security Council. Each quarterly magazine focuses on a specific theme of interest to the marine industry.

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Members of a U.S. Coast Guard maritime safety and security team and members of a visit, board, search and seizure team respond to a suspect vessel in the Gulf of Aden. Photo courtesy of U.S. Navy. to Support the Initiatives of States Countering Piracy off the Coast of Somalia at the United Nations. This multi-donor fund receives contributions from gov- ernments, private industry, or individuals to fund counter-piracy efforts. Funded initiatives include defraying the costs associated with prosecuting and imprisoning pirates; training prosecutors, judges, and law enforcement personnel; and building court- rooms, prisons, or other judicial infrastructure proj- ects. The trust fund has also been used to develop a counter-piracy media program. To date, the trust fund has received $9.2 million and disbursed $7 mil- lion on a wide variety of projects essential to counter- piracy efforts. Future Plans As an ad hoc organization grounded solely in the desire of its participants to collaborate to counter the threat of piracy emanating from Somalia, the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia will function only as long as its constituents feel that it provides a valuable forum for discussion, debate, and collabora- tive action. Because the contact group functions only by informal agreement, and has no permanent struc- ture or continuing overhead, there is no impetus for 18 Proceedings Spring 2012 its continuation beyond the value that participants ascribe to it. Informal discussions among the most participative governments indicate that the contact group continues to be a valuable venue. The U.N. Security Council has continuously com- mended the work of the contact group in facilitating efforts to deter acts of piracy. Additionally, the contact group serves as a model for adaptive collaboration on issues of regional or global concern. Similar models may serve to address other threats of common international concern, such as conventional DUPV VPXJJOLQJ DQG WUDIÀFNLQJ LQ SHUVRQV +RZHYHU ÀVFDO FRQVWUDLQWV PD\ OLPLW DQ\ HIIRUW WR FUHDWH QHZ standing intergovernmental bodies, and even those of long standing and relative effectiveness will be chal- lenged to continue to meet their missions. About the author: Ms. Donna Hopkins is the U.S. Department of State coordinator for Counter Piracy and Maritime Security, responsible for coordinat- ing U.S. and international efforts to combat piracy. She retired from United States Navy and Navy Reserve as a captain in 2009. www.uscg.mil/proceedings

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