old stuff 2
Machiavelli and the Privatization of the Military
“The mercenaries and auxiliaries are useless and dangerous, and if anyone supports his state by the arms of mercenaries, he will never stand firm or sure, as they are disunited, ambitious, without discipline, faithless, bold amongst friends, cowardly amongst enemies, they have no fear of God, and keep no faith with men.”
Machiavelli, The Prince (Chapter XII)
Niccolò Machiavelli wrote that warning in 1513 as he lamented over the decline of the city-state of Italy. A decline he attributed to the pervasive use of mercenaries to guard Italy. Europe at that time was dominated by small conflicts fought between rival city-states fought primarily by mercenaries; and when Italy found itself at war with France; their mercenary forces fled, allowing Charles of France to take Italy with little resistance. Almost five hundred years after Machiavelli’s warning, the world again finds itself littered with small conflicts being fought with privatized forces. Weak states and powerful nations alike have found uses for private military forces eager to provide military solutions in a post-Cold War landscape. Is Machiavelli’s warning against the use of hired arms and his ideal of a citizen’s army loyal to the Prince in conflict with the modern military-industrial complex? Or, in world where multinational corporations can provide everything from janitorial services to counter insurgency operations, are privatized military corporations the next inevitable step in a trend of increased corporate influence over the military?
The modern private military corporation (PMC) has its roots in the private armies of 12th century Europe. They differed from mercenaries because they not only provide military support in the field but logistical support within the feudal system of government, including tax collection and marinating civil order. Europe saw the rise of the nation-state in the mid-17th century in the wake of the Peace of Westphalia, and private armies saw their influence diminish. At the end of the Cold War the modern PMC emerged to fill he gap left by the absence of great powers in weak states unable to provide security for their citizens. They also provided a cost-effective alternative for powerful nations like the United States looking for a smaller lighter fighting force to respond to 21st century threats. They operate on in the global marketplace providing all manner of military logistical support and frequently employ ex-military specialists. From the First Persian Gulf War through Bosnia and Herzegovina in the mid-1990s and Kosovo in 1999 up to the invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003 to today, PMCs have been a permanent staple of the American military apparatus.
Executive Outcomes is a South African PMC created in 1989, comprised mostly of South African Special Forces troops disbanded after the end of apartheid regime. Employed by the government of Sierra Leone drive rebels out of its diamond mines. In less than 12 days the firm had driven out the rebels and secured a 40% percent share in mining concession. After securing contract across the oil-rich regions of Africa the government of South Africa shut down Executive Outcomes citing anti-mercenary laws. PMCs like Executive Outcomes allow fragile states to exercise control over its population by force. In this sense the limited use of PMCs on a Prince’s own population to inspire fear could be seen in Machiavellian terms as an acceptable risk in order to maintain control.
The protracted occupation of Iraq has seen a dramatic influx of PMCs to take up the slack left over from armies that have left Iraq as well as working to repair the country’s understructure and provide combat and logistical support for the remaining Coalition forces, creating what journalist Bruce Sterling calls a “Coalition of the Billing”. U.S. and Iraqi law concerning PMCs leave many loopholes for private contractors to slip through. Due to their legal status as contractors, PMCs are exempt from the mercenary laws of the UN. When DynaCorp, an American PMC that specializes in security outsourcing, was involved in a sex-trade scandal neither the US government nor DynaCorp itself was subject to international legal action. This potent mix of unaccountability combined with military expertise on the cheap will prove a powerful cocktail for the elite of powerful nations. It’s the ultimate exercise of prowess by the state to operate without moral or legal constraints on the world stage.
Machiavelli’s warning about mercenaries ultimately stems from the fact that they fight for money and not for the state. This is the ultimate danger of PMCs. Their only allegiance is to profit, the only flag they fly is their own. After all the traditional military forces leave Iraq the country will most likely turn to PMCs to manage it’s internal affairs and security. In Iraq already contractors have been admitted to being part of protection rackets in which insurgents are paid off to allow contractors to work in insurgent controlled areas. Machiavelli’s warning seems to be going unheeded, with increased privatization of the military being aggressively perused by governments around the world. In a future where this trend continues, an age in which the lines between civilian employee and solider are slowly erased, the only citizens army left may be an army of contractors.
