Problem:
In the paper, be sure to analyze the implications of globalization and technology on negotiation. Your analysis should be a minimum of three pages. Be sure to properly cite your references.
Somali pirates in talks with elders and FBI over hostage Richard Phillips
Crew members of the Maersk Alabama arrive in Mombasa, Kenya after overpowering Somali pirates and regain control of their ship. Photograph: Sarah Elliott/EPA
Negotiations between the FBI, Somali elders and four gunmen holding a US ship captain captive on a lifeboat in the Indian Ocean continued today as foreign helicopters circled a notorious pirate lair.
The lifeboat, which is being closely tracked by three American warships, is reported to be drifting closer to land, which US military officials fear would allow the pirates to escape with hostage Captain Richard Phillips.
His container ship, the Maersk Alabama, was briefly hijacked more than 300 miles off Somalia's east coast on Wednesday, but the all-American crew of 20 quickly regained control. Phillips, a 53-year-old former taxi driver, offered himself to the pirates as a hostage in order to safeguard his crew.
The pirates, who are armed with AK-47s and handguns, fired at a US Navy vessel that approached yesterday, but nobody was hurt and the boat withdrew. They have reportedly demanded safe passage back to Somalia and a ransom before Phillips is released.
Residents of Harardheere, a pirate hideout halfway up Somali's east coast, reported seeing two helicopters circling the area this morning. It was not clear if the helicopters were American and whether they were being used to assist in negotiations or to intimidate the pirate gangs in the town.
The Alabama docked in Mombasa yesterday, with the 19 crew members unharmed.
"He saved our lives!" second mate Ken Quinn, declared from the ship deck, referring to Captain Phillips. "He's a hero."
ATM Reza, a crew member who said he was first to see the pirates board the ship on Wednesday, described how the bandits "came on with hooks and ropes and were firing in the air."
He was responding to a throng of reporters shouting questions from shore about the ordeal that began with Somali pirates hauling themselves up from a small boat bobbing on the surface of the Indian Ocean far below.
As the pirates shot in the air, Phillips told his crew to lock themselves in a cabin and surrendered himself to safeguard his men, crew members said.
In the dozens of previous hijackings by Somali pirates in the last few years, ship owners and governments have been prepared to negotiate and pay ransoms to secure the hostages' release. Only France has adopted a military approach, twice attacking pirates last year, once while hostages were still on board.
But a third raid on Friday ended in a tragedy, when a 28-year-old Frenchman, Florent Lemaçon, was killed as commandos freed his yacht from a pirate gang. Lemaçon's wife, three-year-old son and two other passengers were successfully rescued and are due to arrive back in France today.
Pirates had seized the sailing boat Tanit far from the coast of the east African country on 4 April. Elite French forces shot dead two pirates who were on deck when they stormed the boat.
Lemaçon had been in the cabin at the time and it was not clear if he was killed in the crossfire or deliberately shot by one of his captors.
The US has adopted a more cautious approach, enlisting the help of specialist FBI hostage negotiators who have been talking to the pirates with the help of Somali elders, the traditional figures of influence in a country without an effective government. There are reports that a mediator sent by the elders is trying to reach the pirates by boat.
Meanwhile, an Italian tugboat that was hijacked yesterday with 10 Italians, five Romanians and a Croatian on board has reached the Somali coast. The boat was taken in the Gulf of Aden, off Somalia's north coast, which has seen relatively few successful attacks recently due to the strong presence of the international warships. Pirate gangs have instead been mainly concentrating on the Indian Ocean, an area too large for foreign navies to cover effectively.