The 20×20 presentation was very good experience for me. I could utilize my failure in the 1 minute presentation in AASP. For example, in AASP presentation, I could not make eye contacts because of nervous. However, I knew that my nervous came from my little preparation for this presentation.
So, when I prepared for my 20×20 presentation, I practiced many times and prepared for it carefully. Thus, in this time, I could make better presentation than AASP one. Presentation in this time was taught me that failure is good if I can use it for improving my skill.
Friday, October 28, 2011
Monday, October 17, 2011
Essay Draft
What is actually required to get rid of Somali pirates more effectively?
"We just saw a big ship, so we stopped it," said Sugule Ali, the spokesman for a band of pirates that hijacked the MV Faina on Sept. 25 2008, which was an Ukrainian freighter packed with Soviet-made tanks, grenade launchers, ammunition and other high-grade weaponry. (Alex Altman) Lots of similar incidents are happening even now. The International Maritime Bureau, which is one of the departments of the International Chamber Of Commerce and is specialized in the fight against all types of maritime crime and malpractice, reported that there have been 194 incidents, 24 hijackings, 400 hostages, and 15 killed so far in 2011, all of which is related to Somali pirates. Also, they said that there are also 15 vessels and 277 hostages which are held by Somali pirates now. (“Piracy News and Figure”) In addition, according to their statistics, hijacking and unsuccessful attacks attributed to Somali pirates rose from 22 in 2006, to 51 in 2007, to 111 in 2008, to 217 in 2009, and to 268 in 2010. (“New Strategies”) It follows that Somali pirates’ problem is becoming worse regardless of the efforts of the UN, naval patrols of many countries, and desperate self-defense of vessels. Also, the statistic implies that sweeping resolution is required immediately. In my opinion, the most essential things for getting rid of Somali pirates radically are the improvement of standard of living of Somali people, the achievement of the appropriate balance of the internal efforts the external aids, and stern regulations against foreign pirates.
“The location and historical background of Somalia”
Somalia lies in the pivotal area for the world trades and has painful history, which help to understand the piracy problem in Somalia. Somalia is located in the Horn of Africa and lies along the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. It is close to Djibouti in the northwest, Ethiopia in the west, and Kenya in the southwest. (United States) Somalia was separated into two parts, and each of them was colonized by Britain and Italy in the late 1800s. After WWⅡ, they become independent, combined and formed the United Republic of Somalia in 1960. However, Somalia became exhausted by lots of border disputes with Ethiopia and Kenya, severe drought, and internal conflict between warlords. Finally in 1991, Somalia fell into nongovernmental state. It remains precarious state even now, so it is called “ failed state”. As a result, Somali pirates run rampant, and piracy has become stronger than a cottage industry in this poor country.
“ The main motives for piracy”
According to Iqbal Jhazbhay, who is a Somali expert and a professor at University of South Africa, the main motive for piracy is “pure survival”. (Scott Baldauf) There have been severe drought since 1970s and famine become chronic in Somalia. The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention, which are a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services, reported that about 30,000 children under the age of five have died in just over three months because of the worst famine Somalia has seen in 60 years. (“Somalia Famine”) Also, as mentioned above, now Somalia has not functioned government. It means that it is almost impossible to make a living by respectable job. In addition, according to Jhazbhay, piracy have become a greatly profitable, advanced criminal enterprise because pirates can get millions of dollars by kidnapping people such as vessels’ crews for ransom. (Scott Baldauf) Therefore, it can be said that the main motive of piracy largely derives from the difficult and severe situation of Somalia.
“The present state of Somali pirates”
Almost all of Somali pirates are based out of the Puntland, which is an area of north-east Somalia, proclaimed itself a self-governing state in August 1998. Also, some of them offer a bribe to rotten officials of the Puntland government in order to have them overlook their use of Eyl, which is a port town in the northern Puntland, as their bases of practicing piracy and safekeeping place for vessels which they were captured. (Scott Baldauf) In addition, their armaments continue to be upgraded. They chase their target with outboard motors in place of oars and tote rocket-propelled grenades in place of cutlasses. (Alex Altman) Therefore, the vessels, which pass the sea off Somalia and patrols, have no choice but to equip themselves in order not to be boarded and captured by pirates. In fact, all patrols are done by the navy of several countries, such as the US, UK, France, China, Russia, and Japan. However, both the self- defense of vessels and the patrol of navies are mere the stopgap measure. As Peter Lehr said, who is not only a professor of the University of St. Andrews in Scotland but also the author of the book Violate at Sea: Piracy in the Aden of Global Terrorism, it is impossible to resolve the pirates problems only by international naval patrols because there are 3300 kilometers in the coast line of Somalia alone. (Joe DeCapua) Also, the area, which Somali pirates are working, is 1500 nautical miles far away from their own shores, so it is hard to find them. Trying to find them is like “looking for ‘a needle is a haystack’”, as Lehr said. (Joe DeCapua) Therefore, the naval patrols alone cannot solve the piracy problems radically. Also, it means that additional actions for removing them are needed.
“What is actually required to solve the piracy problems”
Considering the circumstances mentioned above, there are three essential things in order to solve the piracy problems radically, which are the strict regulation of foreign pirates, the improvement the standard living of Somali people, the achievement of the appropriate balance of the internal efforts the external aids.
Firstly, the rigid regulation of foreign pirates who are working off the coast of Somalia is essential. The foreign pirates mean the fishermen who are not Somalian and catch fish illegally off the coast of Somalia and destroy the Somali marine resources by over fishing. It is said that they steal more than $450 million in fish worth out of Somalia annually. (Mohamed Abshir Waldo) Now, Somali fishermen cannot drive foreign fishermen away because they are likely to be regarded as pirates by foreign navies mistakenly even the dhows which are traditional trading ship in Somalia. (Mohamed Abshir Waldo) It means that foreign pirates annihilate the livelihood of legitimate Somali fishermen. However, according to Mohamed Abshir Waldo, who is a journalist as well as a consultant with Saudi Consulting & Associates, this problem has been simply ignored because EU, Russia, Japan, India, Egypt and Yemen mainly hide and guard their illegal fishing convoys under the pretext of response to the loss which made by the attack of Somali pirates. Thought, this point of view is wrong obviously. If the side, which restrains Somali pirates admits their citizen’s illegal act, their control would not go well. Therefore, these countries should give strict controls to their citizens who fish in the sea of Somalia illegally as a pre-step to get rid of Somali pirates.
Secondly, the rise of the standard of living of Somali people is indispensable. This is the most basic and essential thing for them because as mentioned above, the poverty of them is serious owing to severe droughts, famine, and the ongoing nongovernmental state, which is the main reason that they take to piracy. Thus, the UN or many other developed countries should offer the advanced techniques of agriculture more. Above all, Japan has a lot of progressive techniques of farming, so they should offer it more for Somali people. Also, it is required to spread the opportunity for education in Somalia in order to establish these techniques. Therefore, the side which offer the aids foe Somalia should serve the comprehensive supports from the offering the techniques of agriculture to help for spreading the opportunity for education so as to improve their standard of living.
Thirdly, the fulfillment of the appropriate balance of the inside efforts the outside aids is also necessary. The internal efforts mean the endeavors of Somali people themselves for changing their severe situation and the piracy problems. On the other hand, the external aids stand for the help of the UN and many developed countries. First of all, Somalia has to restore the domestic peace and order before asking these aids of the UN or many developed countries. This is because it can be difficult for the UN and developed countries to practice aids for Somalia without the guarantee of the safe of their officers. Thought, there is no government in Somalia, and now it is hard to reshape the political system only by themselves. Thus, the UN also should help to reconstruct the peace and order of Somalia even if there are some dangers. Some may say that it can be violate the country’s sovereignty. However, if Somalia itself agrees to that, it can be done. Also, the situation has become so worse, so it has reached the stage that the UN should go deeply into the problem of Somalia. This is because this problem is deeply related to the safety of the trade ships of all over the world, and if the current confusion of North Africa and the Middle East worsen still more, Somalia is likely to be the state forever that nobody can control. Needless to say, the efforts of Somali people are the base of both changing the present situation of Somalia and solving the piracy problems. They are required the attitude that they do not turn to and do not take it for granted the aids of the UN and other countries thoughtlessly. Therefore, the balance of the internal efforts and the external aids is most significant for changing the present state and solving the piracy problems in Somalia. If the appropriate balance of that is achieved, the government would function well. Also, Somali people’s standard of living would be improved. As a result, the number of pirates would decline.
As explained above, what is actually needed for removing Somali pirates radically are the rise of standard of living of Somali people, the accomplishment of the appropriate balance of the internal efforts the external supports, and stern regulations against foreign pirates. Of course, it would take lots of time and extremely difficult to practice all of things which I said above. However, it is very important to begin with what can do now. I hope that the Somali pirates problems will be solved as soon as possible and the people in Somalia will be able to lead a happy life in the near future.
Abshir Waldo, Mohamed . "Somalia Piracy:The Two Faces." The African executive Free Africa's ultimate capital. N.p., 4 Feb. 2009. Web. 3 Oct. 2011. <http://www.africanexecutive.com/modules/magazine/articles.php?article=4060>.
Altman, Alex. "A Brief History of Pirates - TIME." Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. N.p., 3 Oct. 2008. Web. 3 Oct. 2011. <http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1846422,00.html>.
BBC News. "BBC News - Timeline: Somalia." BBC News - Home. N.p., 20 July 2011. Web. 8 Oct. 2011. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/1072611.stm>.
Baldauf, Scott. "Who are Somalia's pirates? - CSMonitor.com." The Christian Science Monitor - CSMonitor.com. N.p., 20 Nov. 2008. Web. 3 Oct. 2011. <http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Africa/2008/1120/p25s22-woaf.html>.
DeCapua, Joe. "Somalia: Not Enough Ships to Stop Pirate Attacks." ProQuest. N.p., 23 Feb. 2011. Web. 3 Oct. 2011. <http://search.proquest.com/docview/853611624/1323C2ECD99712D423D/1?accountid=10105>.
"Eyl - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., 5 July 2011. Web. 16 Oct. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eyl>.
"History - Somalia - problem, area, crops, system, power." Encyclopedia of the Nations - Information about countries of the world, United Nations, and World Leaders. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Oct. 2011. <http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Somalia-HISTORY.html>.
Pearson, Drew H. "CAN THE SOMALI PIRATES BE STOPPED." ProQuest. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Oct. 2011. <http://search.proquest.com/docview/235997857/1323C336C4D4B34B433/1?accountid=10105>.
"Piracy News & Figures." ICC Commercial Crime Services. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2011. <http://www.icc-ccs.org/piracy-reporting-centre/piracynewsafigures/427-piracynewsafigures>.
Schuster, Carl Otis. "Deadly Waters: The Hidden World of Somalia's Pirates." ProQuest. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Oct. 2011. <http://search.proquest.com/docview/884228554/1323C2D5CF558F9486F/1?accountid=10105>.
Set You Free News. "Somalia Famine: In 3 months 30,000 children under age of 5 lost their lives | Set You Free News." Set You Free News. N.p., 5 Oct. 2011. Web. 16 Oct. 2011. <http://www.setyoufreenews.com/2011/10/05/somalia-famine-in-3-months-30000-children-under-age-of-5-lost-their-lives/>.
"Shippers make themselves easy prey for Somali pirates." ProQuest. N.p., 4 Apr. 2011. Web. 3 Oct. 2011. <http://search.proquest.com/docview/859981432/1323C31448344F72EC8/1?accountid=10105>.
"Somalia." U.S. Department of State. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2011. <http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2863.htm>.
"holman fenwick willman hfw." New Strategies Ideas for Countering Piracy off Somalia; Piracy Prosecutions; Human Rights Isuue. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2011. <http://www.hfw.com/publications/client-briefings/new-strategies-and-ideas-for-countering-piracy-off-somalia-piracy-prosecutions-human-rights-issues2>.
MLA formatting by BibMe.org.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Essay Outline
1. Research Question
What is really required to get red of Somali pirates more effectively.
2. Thesis
The most essential things for getting rid of Somali pirates are both the improvement of standard of living of Somali people and strict regulations against foreign pirates who practice piracy off the coast of Somalia.
3. Main parts
① Historical background of Somalia.
What is really required to get red of Somali pirates more effectively.
2. Thesis
The most essential things for getting rid of Somali pirates are both the improvement of standard of living of Somali people and strict regulations against foreign pirates who practice piracy off the coast of Somalia.
3. Main parts
① Historical background of Somalia.
[The history of Somalia is deeply related to the trends of many Western countries and it is not too much to say that Somalia was baffled by them.]
A. History by the end of WWⅡ
B. History during Cold War
C. History after Cold War
②The origin of Somali pirates.
[There are two kinds of Somali pirates, though the latter one is not so widely known.]
A. The first kind of Somali pirates who had been fishermen.
B. The second kind of Somali pirates who had come from another countries.
C. The common points and different points between former and latter.
③ The countermeasures which is actually done by international society to Somali pirates.
[International society continues to make much efforts in order to get rid of Somali pirates with various countermeasures.]
A. The countermeasures which are done by the UN.
B. The countermeasures which are done by each country.
C. The countermeasures which are done by pirates against the former ones.
④The reason why Somali pirates have continued to practice piracy regardless of the effort of international society.
[There are both inner problems and outer problems.]
A. Inner problem which is mainly related to the present situation of Somalia.
B. Outer problem which is the problem of countermeasures done by the UN, The US, or another countries.
4. Sourse list
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Essay Ideas
1. What is the issue you plan to research and write about?
...pirates in Somalia
...pirates in Somalia
2. Why is the issue important? What is the significance?
...Somali pirates frequent the Gulf of Aden, which freighters and tankers of various countries frequently pass. So, the problem of Somali pirates is deeply related to the safety of many countries transportation.
3. Why are you interested in this? What's the connection to you?...I like history very much, and I have interested in Somali pirates since I learned it related to world history when I was in high school. In addition, I have known that Japanese freighters and tankers are also attacked by them many times. So, I decided to research about them.
4. What question do you have about this issue? What so you want to find out?
I want to know the historical background of Somalia, the origin of Somali pirates, the specific damages caused by them, and the reason why people become pirates and why the world won't be able to solve this problem easily. I want to make my own view for solving this problem after researching these things.
5.
http://allafrica.com/somalia/
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