The pending trial in federal court of the surviving pirate involved in the dramatic hijacking of the Maersk Alabama will be the first piracy prosecution in the United States since the late 19th century. The rarity of such cases highlights the complete failure of international law as a response to piracy. For while hundreds of pirates have been caught by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization-led international coalition patrolling the Gulf of Aden, only a tiny fraction have been brought back to the capturing nation to face justice.
Even as the United States and other governments declare that they will use all means to put an end to the piracy epidemic, nations have completely abandoned one of the oldest and most powerful tools available — “universal jurisdiction.” International law allows any nation to capture and prosecute any pirates, whether they have attacked its ships or not. Indeed, it obligates all nations to actively fight piracy. A policy of catch and release may not fulfill this duty.
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