Piracy

Piracy was the criminal enterprise of intercepting, boarding, and pillaging merchant freighters in the Post Diaspora era. 
==Historical Description==
Piracy was a term describing a robbery committed at sea, or sometimes on the shore, without a commission from a sovereign nation (robbery with a sovereign commission was called privateering, and was distinct from piracy; this required a letter of marque and reprisal (French: lettre de marque; lettre de course).
Commerce raiders were entitled to be protected like prisoners of war when they operated under the legal orders of their own government. Such provision probably included privateers also, though there were cases of privateers being treated as pirates due to the reality of their political sponsors. (, , , )
==Pirate Organizations==
*Kersey Association - a pirate navy whose actions against the Manitoban Republic resulted in an amendment to the Deneb Accords. (, )
*Free Brotherhood - a band of nomadic pirates in the 15th Century PD that raided small, single system star nations in the Haven Sector. Their targets included the Ramon and Zuckerman Systems. (, )
*Ranier Pirates - a self-styled pirate navy that operated from the pirate enclave of the Ranier System in the 17th Century PD demanding tribute from the settled systems in the vicinity of the Phoenix Cluster. Between 1660 and 1662 PD, the Ranier pirates attempted to extort similar tribute from Manticoran merchants in the area, leading to several cruiser actions between the pirates and the Royal Manticoran Navy. The subsequent Ranier War culminated in the destruction of the pirates. (, )
*Manpower-sponsored pirate organizations:
**A Silesian pirate party fought by Commodore Edward Saganami, RMN, in 1671 PD, during Battle of Trautman's Star and Battle of Carson. ()
**The Four Yahoos of Silesia - defeated in 1918 PD by the RMN in the Battle of Tiberian. ()
*The SCNS Versimov crew became pirates. ()
*The SCNS Autonomy crew, along with other Silesian Confederate Navy ships, made deals with pirates. ()
*Ismail Reichart's organization - pirates who raided the Kumang System during the local plagueIn the period between 17th and 19th century PD.. ()
*Hume Liberation Front's former privateers, who turned pirate in 1719 DP. ()
*Templeton Incorporated - a Masadan shipping business coping with facultative piracy as well c.a. 1880 PD. ()
*Chalice Cluster Uprising forces, led by Andre Warnecke - destroyed in 1910 PD by the RMN (),
*Liberation Force in Exile - an ambiguous umbrella organization that came into existence after 1915 PD from the remnants of the State Security Naval Forces and the State Security Ground Forces. ()
**People's First Liberation Squadron - a small pirate party of former State Security Naval Forces associated with the Liberation Force in Exile, destroyed in 1920 PD at the Battle of Nuncio by the RMN. ()
**People's Navy in Exile - a force of former State Security Naval Forces associated with covert Mesan sponsors, destroyed at the Second Battle of Congo while attempting to commit an Eridani Edict violation in Operation Ferret.Many of the crews of the PNE worked as pirates before their recruitment while others were mercenaries hired on by its Manpower sponsors to fill out its ranks. ()
***PNS Jacinthe - a rogue former State Security Naval Forces warship, commanded by Citizen Commander Arsène Bottereau, that acted as an independent pirate in the area of the Verge near the Republic of Erewhon before signing on with the People's Navy in Exile in 1921 PD. ()
==Background of Piracy==
Generally piracy affected area was the Verge - a space beyond the Solarian League.
Canaan was the location of a piracy crisis. (, )
Particulary the Silesian Confederacy was a hotbed of pirate activity with both the Star Kingdom of Manticore and the Andermani Empire battling local pirates in the region to assure the safety of their trading lines, merchantmen, and merchant spacers. Manticoran and Andermani efforts were obstructed as many of the pirates had arrangements with the local authorities that allowed them to escape punishment for their crimes. ()
In an attempt to pressure the Star Kingdom of Manticore to abandon the Silesian Confederacy, the Imperial Andermani Navy drastically increased its anti-piracy operations. Jason Ackenheil admitted that the Andermani campaign had drastically lowered the attacks on planets and merchant shipping. ()
After the annexation of the Silesian Confederacy in 1921 PD, many crews of the former Silesian Confederate Navy turned to piracy. Andermani and Manticoran warships were given the authority to pursue pirates regardless of border violations. (, , )
As an effect of the Havenite Civil War, after 1915 PD, some Havenite warships were sold to pirates by ex-People's Republic's warlords. Moreover, some rogue Havenite units, such as the People's Navy in Exile, operated with its original crew. (, , , )
Several ex-StateSec ships operated in the Talbott Cluster and the Republic of Erewhon area. ()
==Legal Issues==
#Henri Benson-Dessouix was convicted of piracy and sentenced to Hades Planetary Prison. This was a show trial in the same way the accusation of Treason was used to convict political enemies.
#The Cherwell Convention of 1651 PD equated slavery (transporting slaves with ships in fact) - with piracy. ()
#Piracy was a crime punishable by death in most star nations. In particular in the 1910s PD, the Royal Manticoran Navy implemented a policy of summarily executing those captured in the act of piracy or slaving that had been previously captured by Manticoran authorities. ()
#The unauthorized invasion of Spindle in the Talbott Quadrant, attempted in 1922 PD by Solarian League Navy's Admiral Sandra Crandall, could legally be considered piracy. ()
#The Grand Alliance terms for the surrender of the Solarian League after the Battle of Sol stipulated that any Solarian League Navy ships remaining outside the borders of the Old League would be considered pirates and dealt with accordingly. ()
==Associated Codes==
Ships that were being boarded by pirates would shift their transponder code to Code Seventeen. ()
== References ==
Category:Society
Category:Law
Category:Pirates