Introduction

La piraterie existerait depuis l'époque romaine et aurait ses racines dans le secteur de la pêche. Certains actes de pirateries étaient autrefois traités comme des actes de délinquance, tandis que d'autres étaient un moyen légal de pillage en temps de guerre (corsaires). Dans les faits, comme le travail du pirate et celui du corsaire était généralement le même, c'était l'autorisation reçue et la légalité perçue des actes réalisés qui opéraient la distinction. Mais après l'apparition des Etats modernes et l'établissement du principe de la liberté des mers, tous les actes de piraterie ont fait l'objet d'une condamnation universelle. La piraterie a été l'un des premiers crimes à être reconnus comme crime contre le droit international et à être soumis à une compétence universelle.

La première tentative précise de codification de la piraterie a été faite lors de l'adoption de la Convention sur la haute mer de 1958, cela afin de clarifier le statut juridique des pirates et les compétences relatives à l'arrestation des pirates. Ces articles de la Convention sur la haute mer ont été intégrés dans la Convention des Nations Unies sur le droit de la mer (UNCLOS) et constituent aujourd'hui la définition de la piraterie en droit international.  Selon la Convention des Nations Unies sur le droit de la mer, la piraterie consiste en tout acte illicite de violence ou de détention ou de déprédation commis à des fins privées en haute mer ou dans un lieu ne relevant de la juridiction d'aucun Etat.

Il existe aujourd'hui trois problèmes principaux en ce qui concerne la lutte contre la piraterie, en particulier au large des côtes des Etats dont les gouvernements sont défaillants. Le premier problème est que les Etats ne peuvent pas poursuivre et arrêter les pirates dans les eaux territoriales d'un autre Etat. Les attaques contre des bâteaux dans les eaux territoriales sont qualifiées de vols à main armée commis en mer, et seuls l'Etat côtier a autorité pour procéder aux arrestations et aux poursuites des auteurs de ces actes. Les Etats n'ont le droit de passer à l'action contre les pirates qu'en haute mer. Le second problème concernant la lutte contre la piraterie est le peu d'enthousiasme que mettent les Etats à poursuivre et à juger les pirates. Le troisième problème est qu'il n'est permis d'arrêter une personne que lorsque celle-ci est prise au cours de l'attaque d'un navire.

Toutefois, dans le cas de la Somalie, le Conseil de sécurité de l'ONU a pris des résolutions visant à élargir la définition de la piraterie en droit international. Cela signifie que les autres Etats peuvent intervenir dans les eaux territoriales somaliennes d'une manière cohérente avec les opérations qu'ils mènent en haute mer. Ces résolutions suggèrent aussi que les Etats et les organisations régionales doivent passer des accords en ce qui concerne la poursuite des pirates, comme par exemple celui au terme duquel le Kenya poursuivra des pirates arrêtés par certains pays occidentaux.

Le présent Guide se veut un point de départ pour une recherche sur la piraterie. Il fournit les matériels juridiques de base disponibles à la Bibliothèque du Palais de la Paix, que ce soit sous format imprimé ou sous format électronique. Les manuels, articles de référence, bibliographies, périodiques, publications en série et documents présentant un intérêt particulier sont présentés dans le chapitre Bibliographie sélective. Des liens vers le catalogue PPL sont insérés. Le code d'index de classification de la bibliothèque 250a.  Crimes contre les Etats étrangers (Fausse monnaie, Terrorisme, etc.) et le mot matière (mot-clé) Piraterie sont des instruments de recherche dans le Catalogue. Une attention spéciale est portée à nos inscriptions à des bases de données, journaux électroniques, e-books et autres ressources électroniques. Enfin, le présent Guide de recherche contient des liens vers des sites Internet pertinents et vers d'autres ressources en ligne présentant un intérêt particulier.

Bibliographie

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Choix de bibliothécaire

• Koutrakos, P. and A. Skordas (eds.), The Law and Practice at Sea: European and International Perspectives, Oxford, Portland, Oregon, Hart Publishing, 2014.

  

  This collection of essays provides a comprehensive assessment of the legal and policy approaches to maritime counter-piracy adopted by the EU and other international actors over the last few years. As the financial cost of Somali piracy for the maritime industry and the world economy as a whole was estimated to have reached $18 billion by 2010, the phenomenon of piracy at sea has steadily grown in significance and has recently attracted the attention of international policy makers. Moreover, piracy is intrinsically linked to state failure and other pathologies bred by it, such as organised crime and terrorism.

   

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• Guilfoyle, D. (ed.), Modern Piracy: Legal Challenges and Responses, Cheltenham, Elgar, 2013.

  

  Modern Piracy is the first book to survey the law of maritime piracy from both public law and commercial law perspectives, as well as providing a contextual overview of piracy in major hotspots.

  Topics covered include issues of international law, law-enforcement cooperation, private armed security, ransoms, insurance and carriage of goods by sea. It provides a comprehensive introduction to the range of legal issues presented by the modern piracy menace and will be of interest to scholars and practitioners alike.

  Benefiting from a wide range of international expertise, this book will be of interest to public international law academics, government legal counsel, maritime commercial law practitioners, international relations academics as well as anyone interested in transnational organised crime.

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• Papastavridis, E., The Interception of Vessels on the High Seas: Contemporary Challenges to the Legal Order of the Oceans, Oxford, Hart Publishing, 2013.

  

  This book addresses the international legal questions arising from the 'right of visit on the high seas' in the 21st century. This right is considered the most significant exception to the fundamental principle of the freedom of the high seas (the freedom, in peacetime, to remain free of interference by ships of another flag). It is this freedom that has been challenged by a recent significant increase in interceptions to counter the threats of international terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, or to suppress transnational organized crime at sea, particularly the trafficking of narcotics and smuggling of migrants. The book questions whether the principle of non-interference has been so significantly curtailed as to have lost its relevance in the contemporary legal order of the oceans. The book begins with an historical and theoretical examination of the framework underlying interception. This historical survey informs the remainder of the work, which then looks at the legal framework of: the right of visit * contemporary challenges to the traditional right, interference on the high seas for the maintenance of international peace and security, interferences to maintain the 'bon usage' of the oceans (navigation and fishing), piracy jure gentium and current counter-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia, problems posed by illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing, interdiction operations to counter drug and people trafficking and recent interception operations in the Mediterranean Sea organized by FRONTEX.

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• Haywood, R. and R. Spivak, Maritime Piracy, London, Routledge, 2012.

  

  Maritime Piracy is now a pressing global issue, and this work seeks to provide a concise and informative introduction to the area. Never truly having receded into a romanticized past, seaborne banditry’s rapid growth was stimulated by low risks and increasingly high rewards. Currently, obsolete, incomplete and complicating structures and norms of governance, together with advances in technology, enable a lucrative business model for pirates, as they effectively operate with impunity and claim increasing ransoms. Beginning with an overview and historical development of piracy and the relevant maritime governance structures, this work progresses to examine how 20^th century shifts in global governance norms and structures eventually left the high seas open for predatory attacks on one of the worlds fastest growing and essential industries. Moving through contemporary debates about how to best combat piracy, the work concludes that the solution to a chronic global problem requires a long-term, holistic, and inclusive approach. Examining militaristic, legalist and humanitarian strategies and offering a critical evaluation of the various problems they bring, this work will be of great interest to all students and scholars of international law, international organizations and maritime security.

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• Struett, M.J., J.D. Carlson and M.T. Nance (eds.), Maritime Piracy and the Construction of Global Governance, New York, Routledge, 2012.

  

  Piratical attacks have become more frequent, violent, costly and increasingly threaten to undermine order in the international system. Much attention has focused on Somalia, but piracy is a problem worldwide. Recent coordination efforts among states in South East Asia appear to have helped in the area, but elsewhere piracy has expanded. Interestingly, international law has long recognized piracy as a crime and provided tools for universal suppression, yet piracy persists.

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• Daniels, C.L., Somali Piracy and Terrorism in the Horn of Africa, Lanham, MD, Scarecrow Press, 2012.

  

  Christopher Daniels’ Somali Piracy and Terrorism in the Horn of Africa provides readers with a comprehensive and in-depth analysis of the spate of piracy and terrorism plaguing the waters of Somalia and the global threat posed by this activity. Contesting the commonly held perception that the piracy and terrorism occurring in Somalia are two separate and unrelated activities, Daniels reveals how the collapse of the Somali state and the chaos that has ensued created the environment for piracy and terrorism to flourish in combination. He also notes how the failure to restore a functioning central government has allowed both to become dangerous threats not only to the people of Somalia but the entire world. Underscoring Somalia’s dire state, Somali Piracy and Terrorism in the Horn of Africa lays out for readers such significant topics as the reasons behind the collapse of the Somali state and the secession of Somaliland, Puntland, and Jubaland; the rise of internationally-linked terrorist groups, such as Al-Shabaab and Hizbul Islam; and the dramatic spike in pirate attacks off the Somali coast. Daniels concludes by critiquing the methods that have been used to help alleviate these global security challenges and gives policy recommendations for future consideration.

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Database

Blogs

• Hague Academy’s Centre for Studies and Research visits Royal Netherlands Navy

  The Peace Palace Library together with the Hague Academy of International Law, organized a visit to the Royal Netherlands Navy in the port of Den Helder that took place on Monday. An activity very well suited to the subject of this year’s Centre for Studies and Research: Criminal Acts at Sea.

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• Somalia's Troubled Waters: Pirates, Foreign Illegal Fishing and Waste Dumping

  The face of a modern pirate, is usually the face of a young man of Somali origin, a criminal and opportunist whose activities harm international shipping. But in Somali perception piracy is considered differently. Here is the image of the rebellious poor Somali fisherman whose fishing grounds have been illegally poached and plundered by foreign fishing trawlers and whose environment has been used as dumping ground for toxic and hazardous substances.

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• Piracy: Some Titles from the Peace Palace Library's Old and Rare Books Collection

  The Egyptians did it, the Greek did it, the Romans did it: they all fought piracy. Even Julius Caesar himself was captured by pirates. After his ransom was paid, he went after them and had them crucified. At this moment researchers attending the Centre for Studies and Research of the Hague Academy of International Law are studying the topic: Criminal Acts at Sea, of which piracy is one aspect. To illustrate the historical background of piracy, we have selected four booklets for you from the Old Books collection of the Peace Palace Library.

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• Pirates, Buccaneers and Privateers : Concepts of International Law.

  Establishing an authoritative definition of “piracy” in international law has always been rather problematic. The definition is relevant, because any confusion in terminology invariably leads to debates between State sovereignty and universal jurisdiction over crimes at sea. The various international law meanings of piracy are derived from, among others, international treaties, and various municipal law meanings are defined by statutes and State practice.

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Liens

See also

More Research guides on Droit pénal international

• Droit pénal international
• Terrorisme
• Criminalité transnationale

More Research guides on Criminalité transnationale

• Traite des personnes

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