Excellencies,
Distinguished guests,

The happy moment on Wednesday last week when the Topaz berthed alongside the quay and handed back our Seychellois brothers to their families and friends said it all.  It was a time when we were all reminded that we are all children of Seychelles.  Mere words in a speech could not express the outpouring of emotions that followed. Our pride has rarely been felt so strongly. Our joy of existence as one people radiated from every smile, every tear of joy.

We owe the crew of the Topaz a debt of gratitude. Their heroic action at sea saved the lives of our compatriots. Our six Seychellois brothers are today with their families and in their country, Seychelles.

We cannot compare ourselves with the great maritime powers, but the professionalism, tenacity and bravery of our sailors are comparable to theirs. Our sailors aboard the Topaz have made us proud, following their successful operation against pirates. They have shown on one more occasion the raison d’être of the Seychelles Defence Forces whose existence has been questioned from time to time. And today we are gathered to pay a great tribute to our men who proudly wear the SPDF uniform.

To the commander, officers and sailors of the Topaz -- we congratulate you all and thank you for your daring operation which enabled us to rescue our six Seychellois and other foreign hostages, and arrest nine Somali pirates. Once again the world learned that small Seychelles has accomplished a giant task. Your bravery, professionalism, courage, your sense of commitment towards your homeland, were exemplary. You saved the lives of our brothers as well as those of foreign hostages. And you have administered the penalty on the Somali pirates! We will never allow incidents that put the lives of our citizens in danger. Our message is clear -- we will not allow the violation of our sovereignty and territorial integrity. This operation is a warning to all bandits in the region -- from wherever they may come -- that Seychelles will not tolerate them and we are going to take serious actions against them.

Dear commander, officers and sailors of the Topaz,

The medal and the citation which have been awarded to you is an attestation of the gratitude of the Seychellois people to your heroic action.

We have undertaken our own operation successfully.

A EUNAVFOR plane helped us locate the pirate vessel. India gave us the Topaz as a gift. I sincerely thank them for their assistance.      
  
Our joy and pride after the successful operation to rescue our Seychellois brothers and the foreign hostages, and the capture of the Somali pirates, are immense.

It is also a time for a moment of reflection … We have won a battle, we still have to win the war! We still have a long way to go before the decisive victory. The final victory will remain elusive for as long as the piracy scourge in the Indian Ocean is not eradicated completely. There is the necessity, as the international community has recognized, to tackle the root of the problem. We cannot do much about this on our own. We do not have the means, the resources to bring stability to Somalia. But where it is possible, we will give our support to and show our solidarity with the international community. What we have now is a clear message -- we will defend our sovereignty and our citizens at all cost.

Where we are able to do something, we will do it. We cannot just remain idle and wait for the next attack to happen. We have to adopt a proactive stance. We have to ensure that we are ready for a fight that will be long, and also hard.

It is for this reason that it was important that we recently enacted amendments to our penal code which now allow us to pursue pirates even outside our territorial waters to arrest them and try them before our courts. The law now provides us with a legal framework that is clear, and which gives our armed forces the reassurance that actions they have to undertake are recognized under the Seychelles legal system and accepted by international law.

I take this occasion to once again thank the Parti Lepep members of the National Assembly who took their responsibility dearly when they voted for the new law which now allows us to better protect our citizens.             

I feel we should make ourselves clear on certain matters. Nobody likes the fact that we have to keep Somali pirates in prison in our country. But if we had not acted, our own citizens would have been the prisoners. If we had not taken actions, our own brothers would have been the hostages of the Somalis.

As your President, I remember too well the sufferings our Seychellois families went through when their loved ones were being held as hostages on the Indian Ocean Explorer, Serenity and Alakrama, for me to allow another six families to go through the same ordeal.

Our struggle against piracy is not ending today, although we have sent a strong message that we are taking this fight seriously. We have to continue preparing ourselves and always give all the necessary support to our armed forces, especially in training and strengthening of logistics. These two aspects are vital for the mission of our armed forces. And our men and women in uniform have to seize all opportunities, continually, to boost their know-how and competence.

Piracy activities will continue and grow. It is a problem of concern to all countries. We, in Seychelles, are at the forefront. The lives of our citizens are at risk. Our two main industries are under threat every day …

We are ready, and we are taking our responsibility. Our coast guards are patrolling the Indian Ocean although their means and resources are limited. We have increased the capacity of our prison for the detention of a certain number of Somali pirates, despite the fact that our situation does not place us in an ideal position to do so.  The truth that remains -- piracy is not a joke. We have to look for all means possible to stop them from taking our sovereignty and holding our economy hostage.

Recently, thanks to the action of the majority party in the assembly, we approved new legislation that allows us to, among other things, chase pirates and prosecute them. We cannot do more than that. Even Kenya recently refused to take in more pirates in its prisons. I will be frank with you. We are not satisfied with the level of assistance we are presently getting in the fight against piracy. Proportionally, we are putting in a lot more effort and resources in combating this scourge, in relation to our means.

Messages of congratulation and encouragement are well appreciated, but not enough!  Moral support alone will not make us win the fight against piracy. We need more assistance, more training, more resources and increased logistics. This is my appeal today to the international community, especially the maritime powers. They need to show greater solidarity. We are in this fight together. Let us strengthen the partnership. I ask them to put more resources and means at our disposal.

It is only through a real partnership, that demonstrates strong support and is sustainable, that will enable us to, together, fight the piracy problem.  

To conclude, I wish to reaffirm my confidence and the confidence of the people, in our defence forces.  I know that you will do all that you need to do to ensure that your families and your compatriots continue to sleep in peace. You will protect our country to allow us to continue to develop and create more prosperity for our people.

I thank you and congratulate you all, once again. Continue the good work. Keep our flag flying with pride on the Indian Ocean. The people of Seychelles are behind you and are proud of you. I also thank all the other people who were involved in one way or another in the operation to free our brothers and other hostages. I thank the people of Seychelles for their prayers and support.

May God continue to bless and protect our country.

Thank you.

Forrás: http://www.nation.sc/index.php?art=19088