Feral Jundi

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Iraq: Contractor Randy Michael Hultz Released By Militia After Nine Months, Two Other Security Contractors Remain Captive

Filed under: Industry Talk,Iraq — Tags: , , , , — Matt @ 4:38 PM

The official said two other Americans who worked as contractors for security firms still are being held by militants. He did not elaborate, and spoke only on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.

Fantastic news and I am very happy that these militants finally gave Michael up. But what I am really hoping for is that these two other American security contractors also get released. I have to think that DoS is now pressing for the release of these other two contractors now that the ice has been broken for releases.

I do not know the details behind this and if anyone knows anything about Michael or these other two security contractors, or the company they all worked for, I am all ears.  What kills me is that Michael was not listed as a POW and I have no record of it. That to me is shameful, and how could the company or the government not make mention of this? Unbelievable…. –Matt

 

In this image taken from TV Saturday March 17, 2012, showing a man identified as Randy Michael, who is purported to be an American contractor, in Baghdad, Iraq, after he was released from captivity, handed over to the United Nations by Shiite lawmakers representing the hardline followers of anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The United Nations mission in Iraq confirmed Saturday that it took custody of a man who was described as a U.S. citizen, who had been held captive by an Iraqi militia group for about nine months. US man captured by militia in Iraq released to UN

US man captured by militia in Iraq released to UN
By QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA
March 17, 2012
Wearing a U.S. Army uniform and flanked by Iraqi lawmakers, an American citizen announced Saturday that he was being released from more than nine months of imprisonment by a Shiite militia that for years targeted U.S. troops.
The man did not identify himself. But at a bizarre press conference outside the Green Zone in Baghdad, lawmakers showed U.S.-issued military and contractor ID cards that identified him as Randy Michael Hultz.
Speaking calmly and tripping over Arabic names in a monotone voice, Hultz said he was grateful for his release.
“It was explained to me that this is a gift to me, my family and to the American people who oppose the war,” he said at the press conference that was held for Iraqi media.

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Friday, March 16, 2012

Somalia: Halliday Finch Signs Contract For Standing Up TFG’s National Coast Guard

Filed under: Industry Talk,Maritime Security,Somalia — Tags: , , , , , , , , , — Matt @ 1:20 PM

“With the help of several members of the international community and in partnership with Halliday Finch International we will deliver, under the auspices of the TFG Ministry of Defence and through theTFG Anti-Piracy Task Force, a National Coast Guard capability with immediate effect. In developing a national capability we recognise that we need the help and assistance of our regional partners and we will establish many of the training facilities and bases in their areas. Halliday Finch International will provide training and logistic support as well as other services.“

This is great news for Halliday Finch and I hope they can get in there and do some good. I wrote briefly about them in a prior post because they were mentioned as a replacement for Saracen after a UNSC resolution was passed.

Might I also add that HF has some serious connections. They are the personal protective detail for Sir Richard Branson when he visits Africa, they protect The Elders, and are the go to company for numerous celebrities that come to Africa for whatever reason. In other words, CEO Sam Mattock knows how to gain influence and rub elbows with the power brokers in Africa. Hence why this company has been able to edge their way into places like Somalia without a lot of protest or attention.

Now will they perform and actually deliver a good service?  Can they produce results and truly help the TFG in their goal of fighting piracy? Who knows and time will tell….

Another point I wanted to make is the money involved. According to the first article, the source of funding for this contract is very intriguing. Will they really make enough money from ‘fishing licenses’, or will this purely be a donor venture? I didn’t know they could potentially make that much from fishing licenses, but you never know. Also, from my prior post, it was Kuwait that donated this $52 million.

Now that the contract has been signed, Halliday Finch is seeking both national and private donors to fund the operation. Qatar, Mauritius, Nigeria and Angola have expressed interest, and the firm has already secured the $52 million required for the first year of operation. Halliday Finch has predicted that the 10-year project will cost approximately $900 million, and the organisation hopes that some proportion of the funding will eventually come from domestic revenue streams, including the sale of fishing licenses.

The other thing that perked me up was the quote from the press release. I would be curious about the full scope of services that HF will be delivering. Because to me, this could include a whole host of things, and especially in a failed state like Somalia.

Also, will they be using any sub-contractors in Somalia, like SKA or even Bancroft Global?

Halliday Finch International will provide training and logistic support as well as other services.“

Who knows and we will check in on this from time to time. A private security company trying to make things work in a place like Somalia, will have to work pretty damned hard to deliver and I wish them well. –Matt

 

From The Weekly Piracy Report on Somalia -Volume4
March, 05 2012
….TFG Ministry of Defence Announces Creation Of A National Coastguard
The TFG Ministry of Defence announced the establishment of the Somali Anti Piracy Task Force Coast Guard, in association with Halliday Finch International, a Nairobi-based private security company.The new force will be part of the Somali National Security Forces, and will consist of land, sea and air components.
In a press release issued this week, the Minister of Defence, Hussein Arab Essa announced:
“With the help of several members of the international community and in partnership with Halliday Finch International we will deliver, under the auspices of the TFG Ministry of Defence and through theTFG Anti-Piracy Task Force, a National Coast Guard capability with immediate effect. In developing a national capability we recognise that we need the help and assistance of our regional partners and we will establish many of the training facilities and bases in their areas. Halliday Finch International will provide training and logistic support as well as other services.”
Now that the contract has been signed, Halliday Finch is seeking both national and private donors to fund the operation. Qatar, Mauritius, Nigeria and Angola have expressed interest, and the firm has already secured the $52 million required for the first year of operation. Halliday Finch has predicted that the 10-year project will cost approximately $900 million, and the organisation hopes that some proportion of the funding will eventually come from domestic revenue streams, including the sale of fishing licenses.
Puntland’s Administration is already on board, and has agreed to plans to locate the initial training camp in Bosaso, according to Halliday Finch. In the first phase, 500 individuals (yet to be identified, but likely to come from the coastal communities) will be trained by international consultants and Somali security forces.
The ultimate plan is to integrate the numerous of maritime security efforts along the coast, which will require cooperation from the semi-autonomous region of Somaliland. Talks are ongoing, but coordination will likely be difficult given both Somaliland’s bid for secession and its immense pride over its own coastguard.
The initiative is but the latest TFG bid to promote security on the Somali coastline. In 2010, the TFG contracted private security company Saracen International to train its anti-piracy task force. Following allegations that Saracen had violated a UN arms embargo, the contract was cancelled in February 2010. Saracen swiftly shifted focus to its operations in Puntland, where it works with the Farole administration.
Story here.
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PRESS RELEASE FOR TFG MINISTRY OF DEFENCE THE SOMALI SOLUTION TO THE INTERNATIONAL PIRACY PROBLEM: ANTI PIRACY TASK FORCE (APTF) COASTGUARD INITIATIVE
25.02.2012 | The Transitional Federal Government of Somalia recognises the importance of securing Somalia’s territorial integrity. Significant effort and resources have already been devoted by the African Union, Somalia’s neighbours and the International Community to recover and secure Somalia’s borders, including its shores.

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Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Colombia: Oil Companies Say Security Is Government’s Job, And The Defense Minister Disagrees

Filed under: Colombia,Industry Talk — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 3:57 PM

“It’s impossible to maintain any longer our current security plan–one that was effective years ago when there were very few oil companies and fields to care for,” the minister said Tuesday. “There are now 130 oil companies out there.”

Very interesting news in Colombia. Lately there has been a spike in energy sector attacks by ELN and FARC. They are successful because they have reduced the size of their attack forces, which then helps them to attack more targets and thin out the government forces assigned to stop them. The ‘few and the many’ from the new rules of war comes to mind. Also, it is very easy for this few and many force to go on the offensive and cause damage. Just look at what MEND was able to accomplish in Nigeria?

“Before there were movements that were more massive,” Gutierrez said. “Now clearly it’s more individuals and cells, which is a different presence from what it used to be.”

Now combine these tactics with a highly dispersed government force trying to cover down on 130 oil companies and all of their infrastructure/people, and you can see why the defense minister would want the oil companies to pay for their own security. To help the government out because there are just too many people and things to protect against such a dispersed force.

Another thing I wanted to mention is that these oil companies need to realize that Colombians are paying for their protection, as they make oodles of money selling that stuff all over the world. That world market for oil will increase if Iran is attacked or nations fall to revolution.

So to me, this is a classic case where the oil industry will fight to keep getting their good deal and ‘free government security’.  I say make them pay for their own security so the government’s police and military can focus on serving the people and not just serving oil companies. Just a thought.

Also, these attacks coincide with another big development. Colombia is auctioning off 109 oil blocks to international oil companies. The value of those blocks depend upon how secure they are. Who wants to buy an oil block that is in a dangerous area, which would then equate to more risk and more cost?  So security of these sites is crucial to Colombia in order to get more action and attention in these auctions. The FARC and the ELN know this, hence why they are increasing attacks.

But back to private security. Colombia should continue to press the issue of getting PSC’s back in the game there. The companies should be investing in their own security. I compare it to these shipping companies that want the government to pay for all of their security in pirate infested waters, or depending on government to save the day. Hopefully Colombia’s defense minister can press the issue. –Matt

 

Oil companies in Colombia say security is government’s job
Wednesday, 10 August 2011
Dan Molinski
The head of an association of multinational oil companies operating in Colombia said Wednesday it’s the government’s job, and not that of the companies themselves, to provide security to oil workers and infrastructure against rebel attacks.
“We as a sector understand very clearly that security will be provided exclusively by the state,” Alejandro Martinez, president of the Colombian Oil Association, told Caracol Radio.
Martinez’s comments come one day after Defense Minister Rodrigo Rivera said the sharp growth in Colombia’s oil sector has made it impossible for military and police to adequately protect all oil installations, many of which are located in remote regions near guerrilla strongholds.
The defense minister said oil companies need their own private security forces to help government troops combat a wave of attacks and kidnappings by Marxist rebels that has threatened to derail the oil industry’s four-year growth spurt.

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Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Afghanistan: Quran Burning, Shooting Incident, Afghans Killing Troops And Contractors……And Who Said The APPF Was A Good Idea?

Filed under: Afghanistan,Industry Talk — Tags: , , , , , — Matt @ 3:39 PM

I hope it is obvious to the readership here about my disdain for this APPF concept. It is a horrible idea and it will lead to folks getting killed or hurt. I would like to be wrong on this, but there are just too many factors building up to make it a really bad idea in this current environment.

Karzai is a corrupt leader and this force will be a tool to feed his corruption. Does anyone really think that the APPF will be the type of government sponsored security force that will really do a good job for the companies it is assigned too?  Does anyone really think that the APPF will do better than the police or military when it comes to competency or service? Does anyone think they will have any real recourse if a guard is caught using drugs or stealing from the company they are assigned to protect?  Think about it….because this force answers to Karzai and not to you the client and consumer of this forced service.

Also, why even create a separate force?  Just assign military and police to protect these companies, because at least they would have somewhat better training and competency than this force. But not much.

But the really big one here is that these companies will have Afghans with guns protecting them.  With the Quran burning incident and the latest shooting incident where a soldier went on a killing spree in a village, the environment for companies will not be that favorable. With these recent developments, Afghans have been killing western forces or enemy sympathizers have found their way into the system to make attacks. Politicians like Karzai are not helping things either with their outbursts against the west, and of course the Taliban is in the back just stirring the pot and loving it. That is the reality.

The other one that kills me is this fake re-assuring tone that some of these companies are communicating after signing these contracts with the APPF. Louis Berger-Black and Veatch made a classic statement.

“We welcome this security transition as a natural step for Afghanistan,” said Bill Haight, representing the Louis Berger – Black and Veatch joint venture.

Oh really?  lol And meanwhile companies are writing the New York Times and telling them how paranoid they are about this whole deal–and rightly so. Just read the article below. Here is another quote that says it all.

The executive also said he and others at his company’s Washington headquarters knew that some employees in Afghanistan were keeping weapons in their rooms in case their compounds were attacked, and that management had so far turned a blind eye to the practice, which goes against local law.

That stems from the idea that this company’s employees do not trust a force like the APPF to protect them, and they are probably paranoid about an APPF guard shooting them. That is what happens when you do not have a trusted force of western security that can come between you and your contracted local force.

That is the appropriate combination to have, and now with the APPF, it will be all local guards with very little insurance against them–if they decide to turn or had enemy combatants within their ranks.

On the brighter side, if you are wanting to track the progression of the APPF, then check out NATO’s website dedicated to training. They have posted quite a bit about the APPF, to include those companies signing contracts and gaining licenses to use this force.

If you have anything to add to this, definitely voice your concerns here because it will be read. I have yet to see any real comments posted at the NATO site with posts that discuss the APPF. But definitely comment there so they can read your concerns. Keep up the pressure with your company as well, and don’t let your safety become a non-issue. Also continue to communicate with the ISOA and with your elected officials in the US about your concerns. –Matt

 

Security Fears Lead Groups to Rethink Work in Afghanistan
By MATTHEW ROSENBERG and GRAHAM BOWLEY
March 10, 2012
WASHINGTON — The management at a company that does aid and development work for the American government knows that some of its employees in Afghanistan are keeping weapons in their rooms — and is choosing to look the other way. At another company in the same business, lawyers are examining whether the company can sue the United States Agency for International Development for material breach of contract, citing the deteriorating security in Afghanistan.
An Afghan government plan to abolish private security companies at the end of this month, along with the outbreak of anti-American demonstrations and attacks in the past month, has left the private groups that carry out most of the American-financed development work in Afghanistan scrambling to sort out their operations, imperiling billions of dollars in projects, officials say.

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Law Enforcement: Dozens Of Firms Register Interest In £1.5bn UK Police Support Contracts

Filed under: Industry Talk,Law Enforcement,United Kingdom — Tags: , , , , — Matt @ 2:40 PM

Chris Sims, the West Midlands chief constable, said: “This is not about taking away the core responsibility for policing away from officers. I want to be clear that where a police power is needed a police officer will carry out that duty.
“The backbone of the service will remain unchanged but we are committed to finding a long-term transformational solution that is more cost-effective and improves the service we deliver,” said Sims.
“Our values remain at the heart of the service and our priority is to put the public first in everything we do.”

I will have to warn you that this is a Guardian article. lol But if you can look beyond that, this is interesting news. There is much debate going on about this, and it is a classic public versus private debate. You can also see that the unions are rallying around how dangerous of an idea this is and really pushing the narrative of that.

Personally, I think it is a great idea. Because this looks more like a public private partnership than a complete privatization of police work in the UK. The duties these companies will be performing are totally in line with what private industry can accomplish and accel at. Just look at what Bruce Power SWAT accomplished?  Look at how massively large and successful G4S is?  In both cases, private security and related administrative duties can definitely provide value to the client.

Best of all, these police departments can fire a company if it is a poor performer or if they violated the contract. A private company has incentive to do well in that kind of environment and they will fight to do it better/faster/cheaper than the next guy. That versus a government force who has no ‘real’ incentive to perform well–because there is no one that competes with them. Check it out.

My one bit of advice for these police departments is to ensure they have a strong contracting officer corps that can monitor and manage these contracts to the fullest extent. A contracting corps armed with a contract and policy that answers as many of the issues of principal agent problem as possible. That means having folks dedicated to holding these private companies accountable and ensuring the tax payer and local community does in fact get a good value for their pound sterling. –Matt

 

Police privatisation: dozens of firms register interest in £1.5bn contract
Surrey and West Midlands forces invite bids for services including investigating crimes and detaining suspects
By Alan Travis
Tuesday 13 March 2012
Delegates from private security companies were attending a “bidders’ conference” on Tuesday for a £1.5bn contract to run a wide range of policing services in the West Midlands and Surrey.
The contract notice drawn up for the groundbreaking contract invites bids from the private sector for services that include investigating crimes, detaining suspects and managing high-risk offenders.
The widely drawn West Midlands/Surrey contract notice says that all those services that can “be legally delegated to the private sector” have been put on the table while “preserving the integrity of the office of constable”.
The West Midlands police authority says there are “many household names” among the 64 firms but has declined to name any of them. Potential bidders will hear both chief constables and the outgoing chairmen of the West Midlands and Surrey police authorities detail the procurement process and outline what they hope to achieve from the “business partnership programme”.

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