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Revisiting the Legal Framework for Private Military and Security Contractors: Maritime Perspective

Authors

  • Vijaya Singh Gautam Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law
  • Vijay Mishra Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21827/GroJIL.8.1.166-182

Keywords:

PRIVATE MARITIME SECURITY COMPANY, PRIVATE CONTRACTED ARMED SECURITY PERSONNEL (PCASP), PRIVATE MILITARY AND SECURITY COMPANY, INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW (IHL), LAW OF THE SEA, STATE RESPONSIBILITY

Abstract

The paper aims to analyse legal lacunas and suggest possible solutions for the acts and wrongdoings of Private Military and Security Companies within the lens of maritime activities. The paper has been divided into three parts. Part I deals with the necessity and role of Private Military and Security Companies in the present times. Part II discusses the legal status of Private Military and Security Companies and ways of ensuring responsibility for their acts. Part III examines the legal framework for the acts of Private Maritime Security Companies. An assessment of the rules of international humanitarian law (IHL), state responsibility, applicability of the Montreux document and efforts such as GUARDCON have been discussed to highlight the inadequacy of the laws on Private Maritime Security Companies. There has been an upsurge in the employment of Private Maritime Security Companies since 2008 to cope with a myriad of problems at sea including piracy and robbery. However, an umbrella of rules including employment procedures, agreements, training techniques, responsibility in peacetime as well as in times of conflict and the guidelines of IHL must be restructured or enhanced in order to be made applicable to Private Maritime Security Companies.

Published

2020-09-30