Somalia hires lawyers for its citizens accused of piracy in India

Somali government has said it has hired lawyers for its citizens under arrest in India suspected of involvement in piracy amid reports some have died in custody over poor conditions.

Speaking to Goobjoog News, Foreign Affairs Minister, Abdisalam Omar Hadliye said the government had hired the lawyers who will defend the rights of its citizens currently in Indian jails.

“Somali embassy in India has hired lawyers for the alleged Somali pirates detained in India. The government of Somalia is also aware of the death of one of the Somalis in jails of India,” said Hadliye.

In April this year, some of the parents  whose sons are  jailed in India told Goobjoog News  that their sons were in critical health conditions and some of them had been diagnosed with multi-drug resistant tuberculosis.

More than 1,000 Somali pirates are in prisons around the world. Some of them have been already convicted while others are still waiting to be prosecuted.

Somali pirates were actively involved in seizing ships especially in 2011 and secured hundreds millions of dollars for ransom, until the European Union sent an anti-piracy force that ended the boundless piracy attacks in high seas.

Piracy at sea has declined massively since 2011, falling by 40 percent for the first time in six years, according to Maritime reports.

The drop in piracy incidents is a relief to shipping companies using the Indian Ocean that have been the target of pirates.