According to a retired Colonel and Director of Security Support in Fiji, Sakiusa Ravioce,
who runs the biggest of the six mercenary employment agencies in Fiji, `private armies became
a viable commercial enterprise the moment America invaded Iraq' (The Warrior Lawyer, 2008).
The privatisation of warfare (or security for that matter) in Iraq and Afghanistan refers to
the hiring of private military/security companies (PMSCs) by the United States government,
through its state agencies, to undertake functions that were traditionally performed exclusively
by members of its armed forces. The hiring of such companies is not a new phenomenon, nor
is its development specic to the U.S. The practice of tapping guns or mercenaries for hire has
long been in existence even before Machiavelli described them as one type of army in his work
The Prince.1
Outsourcing of military services may not be a new phenomenon, but PMSCs have evolved
only in the past 15 years, proliferating rapidly since the end of the Cold War. This diversication
can be attributed to the changing nature of conict after 1989 (Singer, 2005). The downsizing
of major armies left an abundance of well-trained and experienced soldiers available to set up
and be employed by PMSCs. The reduction in the size of the military at a time when numerous
conicts emerged in dierent parts of the world, led the U.S. government to increase military
outsourcing in order to respond to these conicts (Avant, 2004), and to manage the growing
unpopularity of its war on terror on the domestic front.
The privatisation of security may be a global development, but the operations of private
military and security companies have dierent impacts across regions. This paper looks at private
military and security companies in Asia, particularly in Southeast Asia and how these companies
have conducted their operations in the region. The sources used are articles, books, ocial
documents, and documents available on the internet. This paper aims to consolidate data on
what has been written about private military and security groups operating in the region and
the activities that they are involved in, such as the provision of security to private entities
(i.e., corporate oces, business establishments, and mostly non-government clientele), training
for government law enforcement personnel or a segment of the armed forces, maritime security
activities, and recruitment.
PMCs + PSCs = PMSCs
What does the term private military security or private security corporations encompass?
The terms are used interchangeably. Private military companies (PMCs) are generally corporate
entities that provide armed oensive services designed to have military impact in a given situation
that are generally contracted by governments. PMCs are usually perceived to oer traditional
military services, majority of which oer passive kinds of services such as training and logistical
support, while private security companies (PSCs) tend to oer a more active kind of service,
i.e. providing protective security (Richards and Smith, 2007, p. 4). Thus, PSCs are corporate
entities that provide defensive services to protect persons and property, which are frequently used
by multinational companies in the extractive sector, humanitarian agencies, and individuals in
situations of conict or instability (Lilly, 2001, p. 4). Collectively however, PSCs and PMCs are
also referred to as private military and security companies or PMSCs.
The Montreux Document2
, which contains rules and good practices relating to private military
and security companies operating in armed conict, provides a useful denition. It states that,
regardless of how they describe themselves, PMSCs are private entities that provide military and
security services. Military and security services include armed guarding and protection of persons
and objects, such as convoys, buildings, oces, and other places. Maintenance and operation
of weapons systems, prisoner detention, and advice to or training of local forces and security
personnel are also part of the services oered by PMSCs (Montreaux Document, 2009, p. 9).
In the Philippines, the denition of PMSCs also covers private security agencies (PSAs). These
are private entities that provide security services, particularly armed guarding and protection,
such as private detectives, watchmen or security guards/agencies.3 However, there are groups in
existence in the Philippines, which behave like, but are not really PMSCs. Other private security
groups are those armed auxiliaries used by the State against rebel groups. These are citizens
who are armed by the State or by private interests (i.e., local warlords) and legitimized by their
participation in campaigns against the enemies of the state.