Topic: Status of Defense Contractors and Non-National Combatants
Country: Romania
Delegate Name: Loren Racicot
School: Royal Oak High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Romania position papers GLIMUN 2008 committees
The United States is currently using defense contractors and non-national combatants to assist them in the war on terror. The contractors are essential to the United State, and their numbers in the middle east have only increased. There has been confusion as to what the restrictions of these combatants and contractors are and, once captured, are they protected under the Geneva convention.
The Geneva convention of 1949 resolved that the combatants shall be treated with the same respect as a normal prisoner of war, but those resolutions are not being followed by all nations. The convention also stated that if the contractors act outside of their jurisdiction or bylaws they no longer get the privilege of being treated the same as a prisoner of war. Romania believes that if the combatants are working under United States jurisdiction, and they are actively fighting the war then the contractors have the right to shoot or capture Iraqis. This implies that they are part of the US Army and therefore should be treated as a prisoner of war.
Another issue raised is what exactly the jurisdiction of these combatants is and what is the limit of what they can do. Romania believes that if they are hired for protection of the American employees then that is all they have the right to do. The United States government needs to keep watch over the contractors and thus must take full responsibility for the actions committed by the contractors. The Unites States should also have the responsibility of making sure that the contractors are behaving correctly toward Iraqi civilians and soldiers.
The easiest solution would be to say that the United States government can no longer hire contractors for the protection of their employees. However, this situation would force the US army to protect the workers itself and it is known that the United States can not afford the man power for this. The United States government knows that they can not send innocent civilians into a war zone with no protection. Being forced to withdraw the combatants and contractors would culminate in the removal of the workers themselves, essentially terminating the war on terror as these workers are vital to the war effort. So even though we are not in full support of the Unites States’ decision to hire non-national combatants we know that forbidding them to do so is out of the question.
Therefore, Romania is in agreement with the Geneva convention of 1949 and believes that the contractors should be issued an identification card and be treated as a prisoner of war upon capture. When the contractor is committing unlawful acts outside of their jurisdiction they then shall still be entitled to the right to full status as a prisoner of war but the US government should be charged with the unlawful act that has been committed by their contractors.
