Protecting Contractors Posted by Michael Cohen

One of the most significant and potentially damaging provisions of the recently agreed upon Status of Force Agreement (SOFA) between the United States and Iraq is the removal of immunity from Iraqi law for private security contractors (PSCs).

As I've written before, there is serious danger in this policy being implemented. Many of the most experienced contractors may decide that the risks of being thrown in an Iraqi prison are not worth a paycheck and as a result the US may come to rely on third-country or local-country nationals, who often lack proper experience and training. A deprofessionalization of the PSC corps in Iraq won't be good for anyone; not for US diplomats and certainly not for Iraqi civilians.

However, in a rather troubling editorial yesterday the New York Times is decidely non-plussed about the situation.

Companies warn that the agreement will make it much harder for them to hire Americans and others to provide security in Iraq. If true, it is still an acceptable price to pay to show this country’s commitment to the rule of law.

It is astounding that the Times would cite commitment to "the rule of law" as a rationale for placing U.S. private security contractors at the mercy of the Iraqi legal system, particularly in light of the most recent report of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq. The UN draws these conclusions about the Iraqi criminal justice system:

“Many detainees have been deprived of their liberty for     months or even years, often under precarious physical conditions, without     access to defence counsel, or without being formally charged with a crime or     produced before a judge. Continuing allegations of widespread torture and     ill-treatment of inmates are of particular concern.”

That this would be considered an "acceptable price to pay" for any American citizen is hard to imagine but such hyperbole should not seem surprising from an editorial that falsely accuses security contractors of being akin to "private armies" and describes American PCSs as being "infamous among Iraqis for their “spray and pray” approach to security: spraying bullets and praying they hit the enemy."  It is a charge that is very difficult to reconcile with the reality of how contractors have acted in Iraq and the low number of civilian casualties for which they have been responsible.

The Times is certainly correct to demand greater accountability for PSCs. In fact, they rightly call on Congress to pass legislation that will expand the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act (MEJA) to private contractors employed by the State Department. This would provide the accountability that Iraqis and Americans have been demanding for years - and to which the PSC industry has offered little resistance.

But the blase attitude with which the Times and others (including the same DoD and State Dept that has hired and utilized PSCs for nearly 5 years) have demonstrated toward contractors -- and their possible imprisonment and prosecution in a legal system that has little respect for the sort of due process provisions we take for granted -- is both shocking and unseemly.

The contractors that we hire and send into harm's way merit the same consideration and protection as any other American citizen. It's unfortunate that in a rush to condemn the Bush Administration for its mishandled occupation of Iraq and its over reliance on contractors many have chosen to ignore that fact.

Comments

[Dan Kervick]

The contractors that we hire and send into harm's way merit the same consideration and protection as any other American citizen.

Do other American citizens enjoy this kind of immunity abroad? Americans work abroad all over the world, and my understanding is that they are typically expected and required to obey the laws of the countries in which they work, or face that country's penalties, even when that country's legal system leaves much to be desired.

Why should the garment buyer in China or the book sales rep in Malaysia enjoy less protection that the security worker in Iraq?

[marc]

"It is a charge that is very difficult to reconcile with the reality of how contractors have acted in Iraq and the low number of civilian casualties for which they have been responsible"

How exactly do you know this? Eric Prince in his testimony before Congress bragged that, "we move the package off the X, we don't hang around to do an investigation of the terrorist crime scene". Until very recently it was up to the individual companies to investigate then decide what, if anuthing, to report and in how much detail.

Here's another thing that is hard to figure. Out of the thousands of weapons discharges reported by Private Security Contractors, and remember they don't report them all, every last one followed a "text book" escalation of force. Hand signals, sirens, warning shots, followed only then by well aimed shots at the threat. Amazing not even the "real" military claims that level of perfection.

Dan is right, Americans are expected to obey the laws of foreign countries and it doesn't matter what we think of the fairness their legal systems. BTW the U.S. government has had more than a little hand in setting up the one in Iraq. Blackwater should be glad we didn't create a legal system in Iraq along the lines of the one we set up at Gitmo.

[marc]

" It is a charge that is very difficult to reconcile with the reality of how contractors have acted in Iraq and the low number of civilian casualties for which they have been responsible".

I'm sorry Michael but how exactly do you know this?
During Eric Prince's testimony before Congress he bragged, "we move the package off the X as fast as possible, we don't stick around to investigate a terrorist crime scene".

Until very recently it has been completely up to the companies to determine whether or not to investigate an incident, do the investigation themselves, then decide whether to report it and in how much detail.

Another thing I find odd. In each and every one of the thousands of weapons discharges, and remember not all of them get reported, the contractors report that they followed "text book" escalation of force. Signals then sirens, warning shots at the road, and only then "well aimed" shots into the threat. The Iraqis, with more than a little hard evidence, claim otherwise. Even the "real" military doesn't make anything close that level of perfection, nor could it.

Dan is right. Americans are expected to follow the laws of the countries that they have chosen voluntarily to travel to and work in regardless of what we may think of the "fairness" of the legal system. BTW the U.S. Government has had more than a little hand in setting up the Iraqi criminal justice system. We've spent billions on it in fact most of that work was done by contractors. Blackwater is very lucky it was not modeled on the one we set up at Gitmo.

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