The UN Secretary-General’s top legal adviser on piracy, Jack Lang, proposes three new courts to try and sentence Somali pirates. Two of the courts would be located inside Somalia while the third would be set up in Tanzania. The The UN considers the cost of USD 25 million to be small compared to the USD 5 to 7 billion piracy in the Indian Ocean currently costs.
Jack Lang told the General Assembly that “in the race between the pirates and the international community, the pirates are progressively winning. It is difficult to accept that the international community is so affected by 1,500 people”.
The top legal advisor also urges all states to include UN legislation in their national legislation to enable all states to prosecute pirates no matter where the act of piracy was committed.
Jack Lang stresses that, among many other thing that need to be done, is the investigation into illegal fishing and dumping of toxic waste along the Somali coastline, which was brought up only by Brazil and Gabon. European and Asian states were more concerned with safety matters in the debate that followed Jack Lang’s presentation to the Security Council.