DOI: 10.5176/2251-2403_PSSIR17.53
Authors: Soham Das Das
Abstract:
Private Military Contractors (PMC) has become a familiar concept in the international military strategy arena. Mostly they are private firms, run by military experts, who assist a nation by deploying trained and experienced troops in given locations. These troops assist or substitute the official army PMCs are almost like a modified form of mercenaries. There is mention of the mercenaries in the Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol I), 8 June 1977 (Article 47). There is also the International Convention against the Recruitment, Use, Financing and Training of Mercenaries, passed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1989. However, these legal provisions are not enough to monitor and arbitrate any conflict involving the PMCs. These PMCs have been most rampantly deployed in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region. The practical difficulty encountered in solving issues regarding PMCs may be illustrated by stating how a person from Peru may be hired by a British PMC, and deployed in Syria on behalf of United States of America Now, if this person is arrested, who is responsible for him? It may indeed be a terrible experience for the employees of these PMCs who are stuck between these rules or lack of proper rules. In my paper, I have proposed an international, diplomatic solution to the problem. I have been inspired by the good work that international bodies are doing in healthcare, pollution, trade and other important sectors. The presence of consensus and the opportunity to build it may prove to be a game changer in this case.
Keywords: Private Military Contractors, Army, Security.
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