Dutch international criminal lawyer Geert-Jan Knoops says that current piracy laws are outdated. Like terrorism, we need to decide if piracy falls under ordinary criminal law or if it belongs to the law of war.

Dutch lawyer Geert-Jan Knoops is probably best known for his work regarding the US detention camp at Guantanamo Bay. In 2006, he advised the legal team defending Osama bin Laden's driver, Salim Hamdam, on trial before the camp's military commission.

But last week the professor of international criminal law was at the Dutch parliament in The Hague, advising politicians on international piracy.

The two issues aren't unrelated, he says - both raise questions about the distinction between normal law enforcement and the law of war.

"Do you perceive combating piracy primarily as a criminal law issue, or as part of the law of war? Is it a war against piracy, or do you qualify it as part of the ordinary law enforcement system?"

This isn't a theoretical question. In August, The Netherlands will send its first frigate to patrol the Gulf of Aden as part of the European Union's anti-piracy force, Atlanta. How parliament rules on the piracy question will have real implications for the powers and responsibilities of its navy vessel.

Currently, Dutch law treats piracy as part of ordinary law enforcement and the two main international treaties on piracy do the same. But, says Knoops, piracy has changed and we're not talking about Captain Jack Sparrow anymore:

"We're now dealing with a form of modern piracy - some experts call it maritime terrorism. Highly organized with an intelligence network, with sophisticated weapons systems, with mother ships and satellite ships, on a professional basis, conduct raids. We're dealing with a very new form of piracy and the big question for the politicians is whether that should justify a different application of a legal system than the ordinary law enforcement system."

It's not only an issue for The Netherlands, Knoops says. Given how many countries are affected by these modern pirates, the international community also needs to clarify its position on piracy and come up with a new, coherent and uniform legal structure.

Whatever changes are made to anti-piracy laws in the future, they won't make a difference to five Somali men awaiting trial in The Netherlands. They were arrested in January after trying to hijack a Dutch-Antilles freighter in the Gulf of Aden.

It will be a useful case to watch, says Knoops.

"The indictment is based on the Dutch penal code which includes a section on sea-robbery which was included in our code in the 19th century, so you can imagine that code is quite outdated. It will be a landmark case in which all the restrictions, limitations and handicaps will be revealed."