Somali Prime Minister on Pirates

Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke, the prime minister of Somalia, spoke out today about the piracy situation on his country's coast. Surprisingly, rather than making the same excuses as western pirate apologists, he pinpointed one of the more obvious reasons for piracy:

"The only reason people [become pirates] is because the companies are deciding to pay ransoms,"... "That is what encouraged several young kids to go into the waters. Our policy has always been ‘don't pay ransoms'"

It's nice to see someone from Somalia honestly stating that the main motive behind the piracy problem is profit, abetted by the fact that shipping companies are willing to pay high ransoms, rather than pretending that the pirates act as some sort of coastal militia, or are reacting to environmental damage, as some have suggested.