Phasing Out Private Security Contractors in Iraq

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bobby A. Towery
Keyword(s):  
Private Security ◽  
Security Contractors

Shadow Soldiering

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 24-41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maya Mynster Christensen
Keyword(s):  
Emerging Markets ◽  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Global South ◽  
Private Security ◽  
Scholarly Work ◽  
Global Security ◽  
The Public ◽  
Everyday Practices ◽  
Security Companies ◽  
Security Contractors

Contemporary warfare depends on private security contractors from countries in the Global South. In Sierra Leone, this dependency has produced emerging markets for private military and security companies (PMSCs) seeking to recruit cheap, military-experienced labor. This article explores how demobilized militia and soldiers in Sierra Leone negotiate categorical divides to make themselves employable for private security contracting in Iraq. Based on 19 months of fieldwork tracing militia soldiers as they move between shift ing security constellations, the article introduces the notion of “shadow soldiering” to explain the entanglements of public-private spheres and the blurring of boundaries between the visible and invisible that characterize these constellations. While scholarly work on PMSCs has increasingly highlighted the public-private interconnectedness, the article contributes an ethnographically informed perspective on how security contractors on the ground interpret such entanglements and how global security dynamics intersects with the local, everyday practices and processes that facilitate the supply of contractors.

scholarly journals South African Private Security Contractors Active in Armed Conflicts: Citizenship, Prosecution and the Right to Work

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. 70
Author(s):  
Shannon Bosch ◽  
Marelie Maritz
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
South African ◽  
Global Economy ◽  
Private Security ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
The South ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Right ◽  
Security Contractors

South Africa has adopted two pieces of legislation since 1998 aimed at restricting one of the fastest growing sectors of the global economy: the private security industry. Not only is this legislation completely unique, but it appears wholly at odds with international opinion. In this article we place private security contractors (PSCs) under the microscope of international law, exploring the role they play in armed conflicts, and the status afforded them by international humanitarian law (IHL). We address the issue of prohibited mercenarism, questioning whether PSCs should be categorised as mercenaries. We then shift our focus to the South African legislation and discuss the ambit of its application as compared with international law obligations to outlaw mercenaries. We discuss the likelihood of successful prosecution of PSCs, and the potential penalties that PSCs might face in terms of the South African legislation. Lastly we consider the constitutional challenges which might emerge as this legislation, and a proposed amendment to the South African Citizenship Act threaten the constitutionally protected rights of South African PSCs to practise a profession and enjoy citizenship.

scholarly journals Armor All: The Self-Conception of Private Security Contractors

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Volker Franke
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Private Security ◽  
Operational Experience ◽  
Security Industry ◽  
Private Security Industry ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Security Firm ◽  
Security Contractors

Whereas the values, attitudes and motivations of soldiers serving in their countries’ armed forces have been widely studied, to date we know very little about the motivations and self-conception of individuals working for the private security industry. Using data obtained through an online survey, this article explores the values, attitudes and identity of more than 200 private security contractors with law enforcement backgrounds and operational experience with a security firm in Iraq. Contrary to media dominating images of ruthless, money-grabbing mercenaries, respondents in this sample adhered to attitudes and values very similar to those of professional soldiers serving in Western militaries.

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