Somali pirates holding a British couple [www.shortnews.com/ reported] for $7 million ransom say that their fish-rich waters are being plundered by other countries, destroying their nets and harassing them.
Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke, Somalia's prime minister, said that Somali fishermen who were profitable before the outside harassment are being pushed to work as pirates. However, a fisheries expert in Africa says this is simply not the case.
Helen Bours said, "The extent to which the piracy business has developed is way beyond a few fishermen turning (into) pirates," adding that international ships prefer deeper water, far from Somali fishermen.