ROTTERDAM, Netherlands - Europe's first trial of alleged Somali pirates opened Tuesday with conflicting accounts from the five suspects, a notable lack of physical evidence and a shortage of witnesses, in a case that illustrates the difficulty of prosecuting piracy cases and why so many captured sea bandits are let go.
And with one emotional outburst, one suspect also brought to light the core problem in trying to rein in the rampant piracy afflicting the Somali coast: poverty and the absence of any authority.
"I got into this situation because I am prepared to do anything," he said, speaking to the court via a translator.
The case, held in a top security courtroom in this Dutch port city, was a landmark in the fight against the escalating incidents of piracy in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, which prompted navies around the world to join in a task force to protect one of the world's busiest sea lanes for merchant ships and oil tankers.
Hundreds of pirates have been detained and several have been brought to Europe since the international armada was mobilized, but the majority have been released at sea because of the cost and difficulty of bringing them to trial.
Other European countries will be watching the Dutch case closely to weigh the merits of bringing piracy suspects to trial.
The trial is scheduled to last up to five days, and a verdict is expected next month. The pirates face a maximum 12-year sentence if convicted.
Dutch prosecutors charged the suspects with the 17th-century crime of "sea robbery," though they were allegedly armed with modern weapons, AK47 assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades, when they attacked a freighter in January 2009 that flew the flag of the Dutch Antilles.
The trial opened with conflicting statements from the suspects on what they were doing at the time of the alleged attack, and the lack of evidence because their skiff was sunk by Danish marines who came to the freighter's rescue.
Also, court-appointed defense attorneys said they had only been able to interview one crew member of the attacked ship because they are at sea most of the year and Danish marines who flew over the pirates' skiff said they saw no weapons on board.
Whatever the outcome in the Netherlands, the case is not expected to stop the piracy problem.
"Such trials will not end piracy," said the spokesman for the European Union's anti-piracy force, Cmdr. Anders Kallin. "To end piracy you need to have a solution on shore. The problem is in Somalia. And we don't have permission to go there."
But he said taking pirates to court demonstrates they can be held responsible for their crimes.
"It will show them that there is a big risk in going out to sea to hijack ships," he said.
Two of the Somalis on trial in Rotterdam said they were fishing, while another said he was traveling to family to ask for money. Some said they were carrying AK47s and others said they were unarmed.
Two of the men admitted being pirates, but said they changed their minds when their skiff ran out of food, water and fuel.
"I went to sea to hijack a ship," said 33-year-old Abdirisaq Abdulahi Hirsi. "But I decided against it."
The one element they all agreed on was that they were asking the container ship for food and fuel, not attacking it.