A sea of trade and a sea of fish: piracy and protection in the Western Indian Ocean

Jatin Dua

Journal of Eastern African Studies, 2013, vol. 7, issue 2, 353-370

Abstract: Based on an ethnographic engagement with the Somali coast, this article reframes maritime piracy as an economy of protection linked to longer histories and contestations over trade, plunder, and profit in this region. Through the lens of protection, the article brings into view an emergent moral economy of piracy and ethical debates over the nature of work and trade, including the work of piracy in this oceanic space. Specifically, it brings to the forefront and argues for the analytical separation of two distinct processes and practices of Somali engagements with the sea. The first part locates the development of a “sea of trade” and the centrality of economies of protection within this maritime world. The second part of the argument emphasizes a “sea of fish” and the development of a licensing and rent-seeking regime off the coast of Somalia, from the 1970s onwards. The emergence of maritime piracy is located within these shifting currents and visions of the sea.

Date: 2013
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/17531055.2013.776280 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:rjeaxx:v:7:y:2013:i:2:p:353-370

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/rjea20

DOI: 10.1080/17531055.2013.776280

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Eastern African Studies is currently edited by Jim Robert Brennan

More articles in Journal of Eastern African Studies from Taylor & Francis Journals
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Longhurst ().