Captain Phillips, a lesson for Somali pirates |21 November 2013

Captain Phillips, the movie relating the true story of the desperate capture by Somali pirates of the cargo ship Maersk Alabama in the Somali Basin in 2009, and the determination of its captain and crew not to be taken to Somalia, leading up to an eventual delicate release by the American Navy, is a lesson for Somali pirates.

The US flagged container ship, carrying relief supplies for distressed people in Africa, including Somalia, leaves the port of Oman on March 29, 2009. Captain Richard Phillips, whose breathtaking role is marvellously interpreted by Tom Hanks, foresees the danger of crossing the Somali Basin and orders for extra security measures on board.

However, we seem to be still at a time when the pirates’ guts are underestimated and the world is not yet well prepared against the dangers and sufferings those sometimes child soldiers, or careless and skinny ocean terrorists can bring.

The ship is followed by two skiffs and their mother ship regrouping a dozen of armed pirates. The most dreadful of the pirates is rightly nicknamed “Skinny” and, like his other comrades, shows seamen’s skills and bravery typical of Somali pirates.

The crew manages to intelligently foil a first boarding attempt, forcing the pirates to retreat to their mother ship. Four determined pirates however manage to reorganise themselves and come back with a quicker skiff and capture the ship in spectacular fashion. The Maersk Alabama thus becomes the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in 200 years.

While the pirates are determined to sail the ship to Somalia, the captain and crew smartly resist to the attack through effective delaying tactics. In the process, they manage to inflict injuries on one of them, and more importantly, take another in their own custody. This forces the pirate chief, Muse, to accept a deal whereby he and his men would leave the ship in a lifeboat, with 30,000 dollars in their pockets.

Upon boarding the lifeboat however, they manage to grab Captain Phillips and pull him in with them. The crew nevertheless decide not to abandon their captain and what follows strangely look like a long and sinister towing operation which would altogether last six days: The small fluorescent lifeboat not bigger than a car, showing the huge Maersk Alabama the way to the dreaded Somalia!

Luckily, providence will come in the form of the American vessel USS Bainbridge which is quickly joined by two other warships. The orders they carry are simple and clear, but with the stubbornness added to the pirates’ maritime and military abilities, will prove difficult to obey:

“Whatever happens, Captain Phillips does not reach Somalia”.

While Muse is tricked to board the navy ship “to collect the ransom”, his comrades’ last desperate cowardly act is to torture the captain, and when the agony comes to an almost unbearable point, comes the Americans’ order to “execute”. With the rattling sound of automatic weapons, the captain’s luckily not dead body is immediately covered in blood, not of his own but that of the three fatally shot young pirates next to him.

The Minister for Home affairs and Transport Joel Morgan hosted a première of the film directed by Paul Greengrass at the Deepam Cinema last Friday. The event was attended by former President James Mancham, members of the diplomatic corps, seafarers as well as ex-Seychellois hostages who have faced the ordeal of captivity in Somalia.

The film’s screening in Seychelles is aimed at making people more aware of the mariners’ situation especially with the dangers of piracy and make Seychellois see what the hostages have gone through and what the authorities have done in order to rescue them.

The proceeds from the local showing will go to the Apostolat de la Mer and the Seychelles Seafarer’s Association.

In spite of the “lawlessness of Somalia and the hopelessness of the Somali people” as said by Captain Phillips (Tom Hanks) and echoed by her sister Sandra at the première, surely the Somali pirates have already ‘pirated’ and viewed the movie on their expensive mobile phones and computers bought by dirty money gained as a result of their illegal activity: A small investment from the US $146 million ripped only in 2012.

However, with their thirst for “millions of dollars” as they unashamedly claim to Captain Phillips, and “not worrying about the world but the world worrying about us”, as they themselves say, will the lesson be learnt on the other side, the bad side, of the Indian Ocean? As the reigning poverty, and the forceful recruitment of even child pirates in the Somalian port of Eyl show, added to the belief among Somalis that their fishing grounds are being robbed by foreign ships, even the lesson of death may not be learnt. We have to remain alert and prepared if we want to view other pirate films with happy ending.

Four Somalis however may not go back to Somalia. Those are Muse (Barkhad Abdi) and his three companions who through the film have proved themselves as admirable Hollywood actors despite of their bad role. Unless of course, if piracy brings more dollars than Hollywood!

In fact, throughout the film which critics have described as “one of the year’s best movies”, Paul Greengrass manages to tell both sides of the story by skilfully playing with contrasting pictures of the civilised and uncivilised world.

If you are in search of vivid entertainment, if you want to live the authentic reality of a Somali pirate attack with the brutality of the bandits and the sufferings of the hostages, or if you want to be part of a victory over Somali pirates, one of “good guys over bad guys” to quote Captain Phillips, please watch out for Deepam Cinema’s programme and make sure you don’t miss the next screening of Captain Phillips.

Another film on piracy, this time a documentary named Piracy in Seychelles, will also be available shortly.

M.S.