One of the most interesting things about the war in Iraq is how many of the troops on the ground are actually mercenaries - about 16% of the total. These (mainly men) are part of private companies (Blackwater USA, Triple Canopy and so on) that provide "security" for troops, bases, buildings and supplies.
Many of the men in these companies are retired soldiers - some from the USA, but many from Fiji, Chile, South Africa and Ukraine, etc. They are not under the command of the US Army. Instead, these companies bid in very secretive bidding wars for secret defence contracts. It keeps it all very cosy, of course - political ties and cronyism seem to be as vital as the guns and trucks that these companies sometimes do, and sometimes do not, have in good supply.
It's all very strange to me. It's a pretty new phenomenon for the USA, and I find it kind of alarming. There's hardly any oversight of these companies. Everything is so secret and classified that there is very little accounability, especially publically. You can read more about it here.
Mercenaries in general of course are as old as the art of war. They were especially valuable in earlier times because it was important for soldiers to be experienced and skillful. As guns became widespread mercenaries began to fade because, hey, it's not that hard to train a raw recruit to fire a gun. Experience became less of an asset. Then the Geneva convention basically outlawed the use of mercenaries in wars between nations.
The private companies were basically formed and used in Iraq because the US military simply does not have enough troops or equipment. And the US is finding out just how difficult it is to maintain an all-volunteer force in the midst of a dragging, violent war that increasingly seems unwinnable.
The article referenced here has a couple of conversations with the guys involved that I thought were quite telling:
After a career in Special Forces, the man said, he hadn't seemed able to survive in the civilian world. Work in construction fell apart. He drank heavily. He took a job as a cashier in a convenience store -- ''till I found out I had to smile at the customers.'' He laughed ruefully at his inability to adapt. But now, when his 16-year-old son sent him an e-mail message from back home in South Carolina, with a picture to prove that he'd mowed the lawn the way his mother had asked, he could buy the boy some tech equipment as a gift. ''I'll stay until this is over,'' he said. ''The money's too good.'' - and I think, well, fair enough. Take the job you're good at.
But this bit... well, not even mercenaries are treated equally:
The non-Westerners earn far less. Triple Canopy's Fijians and Chileans make between $40 and $150 dollars each week and sleep in crowded barracks at the Baghdad base, while the Americans sleep in their own dorm rooms. The company explained the difference in salaries in terms of the Americans' far superior military backgrounds and their higher-risk assignments.
Im awaiting the private negotiation teams and Mr Whippy. I think there is nothing that says democracy like Mr Whippy does.
Posted by: Vincenzo at August 18, 2005 12:15 PM