UN condemns piracy off Somalia

USA: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon described piracy off Somalia as "a symptom of anarchy and insecurity" prevailing in that impoverished African country.

He made his remarks Thursday, during a conference in Brussels, Belgium, to collect funds for Somalia.

Ban attributed piracy to "problems that have not been addressed in that country and have been extended to the sea."

Somalia has been trapped for twenty years in spiraling chaos and armed violence among rival groups, with no functional government since the overthrow of President Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.

an called on participants in the meeting in Brussels to support the recently installed internationally-backed government in Mogadishu so that it can gradually extend its authority. He also called on donor countries to invest in Somalia, as "more security will mean less piracy at sea." United Nations, Prensa Latina