THE LORDS OF WAR

The so-called contractors or mercenaries are the 'real' stars of 2011. E 'with the statement that opens the report of the Nova-Institute for active non-violence on the phenomenon of private military and security companies (PMSCs).

The surprising fact is that the case studies tend to support this argument does not come from the 'usual' countries, or at least not by everyone.

For example, they were just mercenaries to write a different story for Libya than Egypt: Cairo, the army refused to fire on their own people, in Libya there was no connection between the victims and those who fired.

Even in England, example of a country that respects human rights, Prime Minister Cameron has turned to Kroll, a private security company to have the 'straight' on how to manage their protests.

Finally, in Spain, which has recently approved the possibility for their merchant ships and fishing vessels to defend themselves from pirates (in this case Somali) by recourse to PMSCs, equipped with heavy weapons.

It seems then that the entire globe is emerging a new (and dangerous) way of understanding security. The monopoly of the use of force of Kant's memory is slowly slipping into the hands of private individuals.

The 'fitness' of this phenomenon was the country in which the more the West has learned to go to war in recent years: Iraq. It is here that the contractor operating in a widespread manner.

The report analyzes the phenomenon of what he calls the "privatization of war" to understand what the impact of this new practice on the population and on the respect of human rights.

Because even if many abuses have been perpetrated by the regular troops national problem - the report says - is that the way to ensure accountability for any crimes are less clear when there is a massive presence of mercenaries.

In Iraq, the U.S. contractors have operated in a state of total impunity between 2004 and 2009, and when Washington finally decided to take action in the wake of numerous scandals that have seen its protagonists mercanari, the responses were quite bland: often the punishments have been translated into a simple removal of those responsible for the country, and in the worst case interruption of employment with the PMSC.

According to the analyzed data, incidents of human rights violations attributable to employees of PMSCs have occurred since the beginning of the war in 2003, with a peak between 2005 and 2008.

Finally, the report explores the legal framework in which PMSCs are going inputting, providing a comprehensive list of companies operating in the country in the field of security.


Contractors are often linked to an American company: the Xe Services formerly known as Blackwater. Over the years, many girls are forced by them to work in brothels in places of conflict. During the first phase of the international mission in Kosovo were organized real recreational venues and entertainment especially for officials of the United Nations. In Iraq, there has to minors forced into prostitution in a basement, while several American soldiers lined up outside. Girls from Eastern Europe convinced to go to work in Dubai as a waiter and then trafficked captive in brothels in Baghdad. And 'success this but not only. War brings behind many shadows. Today in Afghanistan Chinese girls working in restaurants in Kabul and at the same time you see a prostitute. Only in the Afghan capital operate between 25 and 30 brothels that are often transferred for security reasons. Those are the most important areas of Taimany, Hashuqan-o-Harifan, Qala-e-Zaman Kan.

They are not just the result of rampant poverty but an illegal activity carried out by local criminals (Taliban), international and often by soldiers "mercenaries" without scruple whose activity is often not absolutely controlled. Yet the same Obama administration had asked for a different attitude punishing those who were guilty of crimes related to prostitution and sex trafficking. Salaried by the U.S. government their goal was to be another, to protect the VIP, and instead seems to be interested in procuring prostitutes. The former Italian Giampiero Spinelli contractor working for foreign companies in an interview with me told me how were operating in Iraq and Afghanistan. "By regulation of the multinational force any private company and no operator contracted, either by private government, could come later in comparison to the troops. A serious crime for which you risked arrest and immediate return. All contractors in Iraq could only act in self-defense. No one could, for the rules of engagement, participate in any military confrontation and was only required to escort and protect the important people. "But how then to explain certain attitudes and above all missed penalties by the U.S. government. At this point in the game other than those contractors paid media to hide the truth, poison testing, also acting illegally under international law.

Justify or demonize governments, military forces or non-regular covering at the same time the job of reporter and media contractor. Cover of crimes by limiting the information in the pay of some powerful government, this is the face of the contractors in the new 2.0.