Somalia’s parliament unanimously approves tougher anti-piracy law bolstering maritime security

Somalia Passes Revised Anti-Piracy Law as Attacks Resurface Off Its Coast

Unanimous vote in Mogadishu

Somalia’s Parliament has overwhelmingly approved a revised anti-piracy and anti-kidnapping law, a sweeping update to legislation first written in 1975, as authorities confront a worrying uptick in attacks along one of the world’s most strategic sea lanes. All 140 lawmakers present backed the bill, an unusual show of unity in a chamber more accustomed to hard bargaining over security and federal powers.

“This is a historic day for Somalia,” Second Deputy Speaker Abdullahi Omar Abshirow said after the vote. “The unanimous support reflects our shared commitment to ending piracy and ensuring our waters remain safe for all.”

The law’s passage follows several recent incidents in the western Indian Ocean, including the hijacking of a Malta-flagged vessel headed to South Africa that was later freed after a European Union naval intervention. While the text of the revised law was not immediately published, officials say the update modernizes outdated provisions, strengthens penalties, and better aligns domestic rules with international maritime law—moves they hope will make arrests stick and prosecutions hold up in court.

Why this matters

The coastline of Somalia forms a gate between the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea, a corridor that funnels vessels toward the Suez Canal. A disruption here ripples across continents. Insurance premiums rise. Cargoes are rerouted around Africa. Prices, already sensitive in a jittery global economy, feel the nudge.

Somalia knows this history well. A decade ago, skiffs launched from ragged coves turned into a global crisis. At the peak in 2011, Somali-linked pirates were blamed for hundreds of attacks and dozens of hijackings, with ransoms running into the hundreds of millions of dollars, according to the International Maritime Bureau. Naval patrols, onboard security guards, and better shipboard practices pushed those numbers down dramatically in the years that followed.

But the past year has brought signs of resurgence. As violence and missile strikes in the Red Sea forced shipping companies to change routes and stretch supply lines, opportunistic groups saw an opening. Maritime security advisories in the region have again begun to sound familiar notes of caution: zig-zag courses, higher speeds, razor wire strung along decks, and watchful crews scanning horizons for fast-approaching skiffs.

What’s new—and what we don’t yet know

The government says the new legal framework will stiffen Somalia’s hand against the full spectrum of crimes tied to hijackings, including kidnapping for ransom and the logistics that underpin maritime attacks. Officials also emphasize the law’s role in enabling closer cooperation with international partners—from the European Union’s Operation Atalanta to regional coast guard networks—that patrol or support arrests and transfers in these waters.

Details on new sentencing guidelines, jurisdiction beyond territorial waters, and procedures for detaining and trying suspects were not immediately released. Those will matter. In the past, gaps in Somali law and capacity meant suspects were sometimes handed over to third countries for prosecution, notably the Seychelles and Kenya. Building a credible pipeline from interdiction to prosecution at home—chain of custody, evidentiary standards, defense counsel, and detention conditions—will be a test of whether “modernization” can translate into deterrence.

The long shoreline and the short reach of the state

Somalia’s coast stretches for more than 3,300 kilometers, one of Africa’s longest. That geography is a blessing and a headache: a vast resource for fishing and trade, but a scorched maze of creeks and islets for anyone trying to police it. Federal and regional authorities, including the Puntland State Maritime Police Force in the northeast, have periodically worked with international partners to disrupt pirate bases and trafficking networks. Yet a fractured political map, limited budgets, and a patchwork of security forces often slow coordination.

Veteran Somali fishermen, who remember the early 1990s when foreign trawlers crowded nearshore waters, bristle at the narratives that romanticize piracy as a form of “coast guard.” Still, they point to underlying grievances—illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing; years of drought; and few jobs for young men in coastal towns—conditions that make militant recruiters and pirate financiers a persuasive presence. Any law, however well-written, competes with everyday economics.

A global spotlight on a regional choke point

The Indian Ocean–Red Sea passage carries container ships, oil tankers, grain freighters, and thousands of seafarers who rarely make the news unless something goes wrong. When it does, the fallout travels far. A diverted tanker can add weeks to a voyage and many millions in costs. In recent months, shipping lines weighing the threat of missile attacks in the Red Sea against the risk of piracy further south have had to make hard calculations about crew safety and corporate risk.

That global context helps explain the diplomatic muscle behind Somalia’s legislative push. Western and regional navies have stepped up patrols. The International Maritime Organization has urged coastal states to update laws to match evolving threats. Private security firms report renewed demand for guards on deck, and insurers have adjusted risk ratings for portions of the western Indian Ocean, including the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia and Yemen.

Voices from the shoreline

In coastal towns like Eyl and Hobyo—once synonymous with piracy—young men sit on overturned skiffs at dusk, talking about fuel prices and WhatsApp messages from cousins in the Gulf. A fisherman in Bosaso described a familiar calculation: “If the sea is calm, we go out. If the engines work, we fish. If the fish don’t come, we wait for another day.” Most want to fish, not fight. But it only takes a handful of men, a fast boat, and a satellite phone to make the world notice.

For seafarers transiting nearby, the renewed attention brings a measure of reassurance. “Law and enforcement matter,” a ship’s master told a maritime risk consultant this month, “but what we also need is predictability—clear rules, consistent patrols, and a place to take suspects where the law applies.” That is the bridge Somalia’s new legislation promises to build.

What to watch next

• Implementation: Will prosecutors, judges, and police receive training and resources to apply the new law quickly and fairly?
• Coordination: Can federal and regional authorities align procedures and share intelligence across a sprawling coastline?
• International handoffs: Will Somalia retain more cases at home, or continue to rely on regional courts for trials and incarceration?
• Deterrence at sea: Do naval patrols and better shipboard defenses keep opportunistic groups from rebuilding their networks?
• Livelihoods on land: Are there parallel investments in legal fishing, ports, and youth employment to drain recruitment pools?

For now, Mogadishu is sending a clear signal: the era of legal ambiguity that pirates once exploited is narrowing. The hard part begins after the applause—turning a unanimous vote into safer waters, steadier commerce, and shorelines where the most valuable catch is the one that comes up in a net, not a ransom call.

By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.