Topic: Status of Defense Contractors and Non-National Combatants
Country: Niger
Delegate Name: Madeline Kayes
School: Cranbrook Kingswood
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Niger position papers GLIMUN 2008 committees
Recently many problems have risen universally concerning the status of defense contractors and non-national combatants. With no real laws determining the legality of contractors and combatants, distinguishing between legal and illicit use of them has been nearly impossible. Many cases have come up in countries claiming that other countries are illegally using people for assistance in their armed forces. Niger understands the need for regulation of the status of defense contractors and non-national combatants in order to prevent and stop problems resulting from differing views on the topic.
Niger realizes the need for managing what is illegal and what is not illegal pertaining to defense contractors and non-national combatants. However, the issue is not one that affects Niger directly. Niger has not done anything to address the issue on a national level, because the issue is not a prevalent problem in the country. Niger has not participated in any wars with other countries, although it is competing with itself in a war on terror. The issue of the status of defense contractors and non-national combatants is not relevant with the war on terror, though, because all of the terrorists are performing illicit actions that are not controlled governmentally.
Niger has addressed the status of defense contractors and non-national combatants on an international level by being an active supporter of United Nations propositions outlining rules for the issue. Niger supported the third Geneva Convention in 1949 which laid out rules for how the contractors should be treated as well as looked at.
Niger realizes the many problems with not having a definite status of what defense contractors and non-national combatants are, and therefore recommends that "defense contractor" and "non-national combatant" are meticulously defined internationally. Niger feels that defining the status will eliminate the uncertainty of who exactly is a defense contractor or non-national combatant and will therefore eliminate any problems involving these people. Therefore, Niger feels that this committee should create a definition of what defense contractors and non-national combatants are.
