PIRACY (ML. piratic, from Lat. piratieu. piracy, fern. sg. of piratieus, from Gk. retpartritss, peirulikos, relating to a pirate, from Ok.re/parljs, priraPs, pirate, one who attacks or tries, from Iretpav, peiran. to attempt, attack, from irtipa, peira, attempt, attack: connected with ir6pos. Poros, passage. Skt. par. to cross, and ultimately with Eng. fare). Robbery on t he high seas direct ed against the whole body of civilized States. rather than against any particular State. The rules of international law provide that the penal ty upon conviction may be death. But piracy jure anliunt. or piracy as defined by international law, and piracy a: described by the municipal law of a particular State. must be distinguished.
Three requirements are necessary to constitute all it of piracy jute yentium: First, it must be au act of adequate violence. It need not be neces sarily an act of depredation. While the pirate is generally merely a robber, acts done by unau thorized persons for political ends have been deemed piratical. though the animus furandi. the intent, teas wanting and there was no purpose of indiscriminate aggression upon the vessels of all nation.. Thus a single act of violence is sulli eientn as the successful revolt of a ship's crew against it, officers. If they gain control of the ship, they are pirates; it their attempt fails and lawful authority is never superseded, the act is one of mutiny only, not piracy. Sec ond, it must be an set done outside the terri torial jurisdiction of a civilized State. Some authorities have held that an invasion from the sea upon the mast of a civilized State to ravage and destroy without national authoriza tion is piracy. But being done within the terri torial jurisdictionof the State, it is subject to the municipal law thereof and is outside the juris diction of the international code. Yet an act of similar character against an unappropriated isl and and the robbing of civilized persons there en gaged in trade. or missionary work. would he piracy. Third. the perpetrators of the act must be without the authority of ally recognized political 001111111Inity. which when done under national authorization are lawful acts of war are, hence, piracy when not so authorized, and the possession of two or more incompatible commissions is deemed to have the same effect as the absence of any. So if in time of war a privateer procures letters from each belligerent and preys upon the commerce of both, site is a pirate; but if a cruiser having a lawful eommission exceeds her authority in making eaptures. she is not a pirate.
for the State authorizing her originally is held responsible for her acts. For purposes of author ization recognition of independence is not re quired; but of belligerency is suffi cient to validate a commission authorizing acts of violence for belligerent cruisers; but if such a community ceases to exist as a political unit, the commission is no longer valid.
Attempts have been made to bring acts done by vessels under commissions from a revolted com munity, which has not obtained recognition of belligerency, under the protection of this rule. Several instances have occurred where a dis position has been shown to treat as pirates per sons guilty of accepting letters of marque and reprisal from one of two belligerents when the other was at peace with the nation of which the privateer was a subject. but such all attitude is at variance with the general usage of nations.
Piracy is punishable by any State which Cap tures the perpetrators. that is. a State has juris diction to try and punish all pirates seized by its vessels. One of the attributes of an independent State is the power to regulate its oN?n criminal code, and it may declare certain offenses to he piracy not so regarded by international law. Stich are acts of piraey as defined by municipal statute. These laws can have force only in the jurisdiction creating them; and. while sim ilar regulations may be adopted by other States, in the absence of special agreement between them the officers of one may not arrest or punish sub jects of the other for offenses committed beyond its jurisdiction. even though such acts are de fined as offense: by the Of t he State to which the offender belong:. Thus, while the slave trade is declared to be piracy only by virtue of munici pal law. efforts have been made to bring it under international jnrisdiction by agreement between the powers. 'Phis has not la-en effeetnally done. although after much international difficulty and dispute as to the right of search. etc.. an inter national convention was finally reached in IS90 a result of the conference of the civilized States, called at the instance of the King of 'Bel gium, which provided for a complicated system of measures of repression.
:see such titles as Mutt SEA ; ARE CLAU,UNI: MUTINY; SLAVERY, etc. Consult the authorities referred to under IxrEaNATIONAL I,Aw; Calm IN AL etc.