Why is it that I have never heard about the mysterious dumping of nuclear waste off the coast of Somalia? Most likely, neither have you. In a recent column on Huffington Post Johann Hari explains the intricacies of the whole "Somali pirate problem" and brings to light some amazing details that our news media has never mentioned.
Since Somalia's government has essentially collapsed, there are no officials to take care of things like patrolling the coastlines of the country. Without that protection, unscrupulous shippers discovered that they could dump nuclear waste with impunity and have done so with vigor.
Barrels of radioactive waste regularly wash up on shore and the local population is dying from radiation sickness. Why haven't we heard this? Probably because few if any journalists visit the unstable African country.
Additionally, foreign fisherman have been working in Somali waters illegally. This deprives the locals of their livelihood and so many turned to pirating. The majority of the Somali pirates were fisherman who no longer can support their families and have turned to crime.
Isn't it time someone did a little investigative reporting and brought this part of the story to light? Pirates are not heroes, at least not today, but knowing why they have turned to extortion instead of fishing is important. Stopping the dumping of radioactive waste on the coastline of Somalia is also a priority, and without a government to speak officially for these people, who is left to protest?
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This was reported widely three years ago, on the BBC, on the Voice of America and in this United Nations report (see below). The problem is people don't pay attention or care enough.
http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2005-02/2005-02-23-voa23.cfm
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