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Archive -Seychelles

Seminar sheds light on piracy in the region |19 May 2018

 

 

 

 

The future of the Indian Ocean and the recent piracy activities in the region is the focus of a series of seminars being conducted by the Sir James Mancham Peace and Diplomacy Research Institute of the UniSey.

The first seminar under the theme “Who Cares about Somalia” was held on Thursday afternoon at The Station, Sans Souci.

The vision of the Sir James Mancham Peace and Diplomacy Research Institute is to be an international hub for peace and diplomacy studies contributing to global peace through research, education, training and mediation.

To enable such a powerful mission become a reality, the centre is promoting ongoing research, training, and capacity building in peace and diplomacy, facilitating high-level dialogue between global peace building players and promoting the engagement of youth in peace building among others.

Professor Emeritus Dennis Hardy, who is also the acting director of the the Sir James Mancham Peace and Diplomacy Research Institute, stated that the seminar will provide a better understanding of piracy in our region.

“We are surrounded by the Indian Ocean, but people use it in different ways to conduct violence. We started our series of seminars with Somalia, which is a fascinating place, with many stories to tell. Somalia has played a key role in Seychelles history with piracy a few years ago,” he said.

During the seminar there were various presentations about Somalian piracy situation related to Seychelles.

The first speaker was the political counselor of the British high commission in Seychelles, Matthew Harper. He stated that the British has been involved with piracy for the last ten years, and has successfully been able to contain it.

“The UK has been trying to make a difference in Somalia through various projects related to piracy. There are around 12 million people in Somalia, and it’s the most corrupt country and worst place for women to live,” he said.

The Superintendent of the Prisons, Raymond St Ange, who was also a guest speaker, related his first experience of piracy.

“A few years back Seychellois fishermen were held hostage in Somalia, but they all managed to get home safely with the help of the government. At the Montagne Posée prison we have had a lot of Somalian pirates who have served out their sentences,” he said.

The last guest speaker was Professor Ashton Berry from the UniSey who also shared is knowledge of Somalia.

The seminar ended with a small reception for all the participants.

 

 

 

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