Cindy Vallar's Blog - Posts Tagged "maritime-security"

The War for Muddy Waters: Pirates Terrorists Traffickers and Maritime Insecurity by Joshua Tallis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


To truly understand this book’s content, it is essential to understand three points. First, the term “maritime security” lacks a definitive meaning; it connotes one thing to some, another thing to others, depending on who is explaining what it encompasses. Second, the word “littoral” once referred to the water surrounding a nation’s coast. At one time this extended three miles from the shore; later that distance was extended to twelve. But it encompasses more than just the water, coming to incorporate a portion of the land, people, and economy near the water. For example, if a littoral extends 200 miles inland, this means that “75 percent of the world’s population, 80 percent of capital cities, and practically ‘all major centres of international trade and military power’” lay within this littoral, which turns this area into a more inviting target for terrorists and other criminals. (3)

Third, “broken windows theory” is a way of explaining the connection between the growth of crime in and the decay of urban neighborhoods. For example, if the window of an establishment is broken and then repaired, those who live there take pride in their community and flourish. If, however, the broken window is not repaired, it can lead to other windows being broken, a lack of caring, a growth of fear in the inhabitants, and a rise in crime because those breaking the law know there is little or no policing. What the author attempts to do in this book is to apply broken windows theory to littoral regions of the world to show that this criminological principle can be effectively applied to maritime security and thus, provide those tasked with maritime security, such as the United States Navy, with an out-of-the-box method of addressing a danger that all nations already do or will face in the future.

In the past, the navy’s traditional role has been to safeguard its nation’s interests at sea and far from land. This is no longer the case, since nowadays the highest threats impacting nations can be found much closer to home. For example, Tallis recounts the November 2008 attack on Mumbai, India when Pakistani terrorists hijacked a fishing trawler, killed the captain, and successfully infiltrated the city and killed 100 people and wounded many more.

But applying a theory originally deemed as an appropriate means of policing crime, doesn’t automatically make it applicable to addressing issues of maritime security. This is what Tallis sets out to do in this book. He shows how this theory can be and has been applied to trafficking crimes, as well as how it can impact other types of crimes, such as money laundering and corruption, that are integral to successful criminal enterprises. Then he tests his hypothesis by showing how it can be applied to two regions where maritime piracy threatens maritime security. To achieve his goals of showing that broken windows theory is applicable and to spark new conversations in strengthening maritime security, he begins by exploring the current literature on maritime security and the challenges strategists face. Then he focuses on the theory itself and elucidates the key themes of the book.

The second part of the book focuses on the Caribbean and the trafficking of cocaine and crimes tangentially connected to drug smuggling. By the conclusion of these three chapters he successfully provides readers with the necessary foundation to test his conclusions in part three, where he integrates piracy into the broken windows theory. This section is divided into two chapters, one that examines West African piracy – a relatively new region for this crime – and then moves to Southeast Asia, which has been combatting piracy with varying degrees of success for centuries.

Tallis readily admits that his book isn’t geared toward the general lay reader. He identifies his audience as being either researchers or naval strategists. This doesn’t make the material less interesting to other readers, but it is written in a more academic style than a down-to-earth book on modern maritime piracy, such as John Burnett’s Dangerous Waters or Jay Badahur’s The Pirates of Somalia. What makes The War for Muddy Waters an invaluable addition to collections on modern piracy is that Tallis uses a different approach to examine and address dangers that navies and nations face today and in the future. Since pirates and terrorists have access to modern technologies and tend to think outside normal parameters to achieve their goals, it makes sense that those who study maritime security issues and devise strategies to address these issues should do so as well.





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