Analyses
Attempts to Regulate Mercenaries and Private Military Companies
By Sarah Franklin, Transnational Law & Contemporary Problems Winter, 2008
May 10, 2008 - 11:06:02 AM

While many criticize PMCs and try to connect mercenaries with human rights abuses, others argue that PMCs should remain legal because they provide important security services, particularly in post-Cold War Africa. ... The FMAA sought to restrict South Africans from participating in conflicts abroad and to control PMCs, such as Executive Outcomes, based in South Africa. ... When states are allowed to hire mercenaries for certain purposes, such as training or security, as they can under the African Union Mercenary Convention, the use and prevalence of mercenaries and PMCs will likely increase. ... In its resolutions, the General Assembly also has encouraged Member States to enact legislation making recruitment, financing, and training of mercenaries a criminal offense. ... Since an outright prohibition on PMCs is not likely, countries should enact domestic laws, modeled on South Africa's, prohibiting citizens from working as mercenaries, and strictly limit the work of PMCs.

Source: Ocnus.net 2008