US to outsource drug war in Afghanistan

[rainbow4321]

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/world/stories/122406dnintdyncorp_colombia.3b3cdf08.html


After nearly a decade of experience eradicating illicit-drug crops in Colombia for the State Department, DynCorp has won a new contract that could earn the company more than $2.1 billion over the next 10 years and will include operations in Afghanistan, the world’s biggest producer of

Citing State Department estimates, the GAO said, “The direct costs of supporting the contractor in Colombia increased from about $6.6 million in fiscal year 1996 to $36.8 million in fiscal year 1999. According to the State Inspector General, U.S.-provided contractor pilots and mechanics are paid between 2.5 and 4 times more than the Colombian contractors employed by the National Police.”

Asked why the government is forgoing the cost savings and continuing to use DynCorp, Mr. Grossman responded, “If there’s an implication to your question that people kept the Colombians from doing this in order to keep this contract , I don’t believe that. Don’t forget that DynCorp has lost people; they’ve had people taken hostage there. This is not a cost-free thing for the company, just as it’s not a cost-free thing for the United States of America.”

State Department declined interview requests for this story. From 2005 to 2008, DynCorp will have received $643 million for eradication work, mainly in Colombia and Afghanistan.
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DynCorp's history:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DynCorp_International

DynCorp has had its share of controversy, as private military contractors such as Halliburton have had increasing roles in U.S. military operations overseas. This has led to the question of whether PMCs can be held to the same standards of accountability as members of the U.S. military.


The company was also involved in the sex trade while working in Bosnia. A DynCorp employee, Kathryn Bolkovac, was fired after revealing that Dyncorp employees had frequented brothels where women had been imprisoned. Another Dyncorp employee, Ben Johnson, was also fired after revealing Dyncorp's involvement in forced-prostitution rings in Bosnia.

At least 13 DynCorp employees have been sent home from Bosnia—- and at least seven of them fired—- for purchasing women or trafficking of women and children, though none have ever faced criminal sanctions.<9> Despite these actions, Dyncorp continues to receive more than $2 billion in Department of Defense contracts to provide "post-conflict police training" around the world.

In September 2005, Brigadier General Karl Horst, deputy commander of the Third Infantry Division in charge of security in Baghdad after the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, said this of DynCorp and other security firms in Iraq: "These guys run loose in this country and do stupid stuff. There's no authority over them, so you can't come down on them hard when they escalate force... They shoot people, and someone else has to deal with the aftermath. It happens all over the place."<12>


Aggressive behaviour in Afghanistan
DynCorp have come under heavy criticism in Afghanistan for aggressive behaviour, with one security guard allegedly slapping the Afghan Transport Minister. They were replaced as Karzai's Presidential Guard in November 2005, apparently in a bid by Karzai to demonstrate his independence and because of DynCorp's aggressive approach. DynCorp continues with both the Afghanistan Police Programme, as well as the Poppy Elimination Programme in Afghanistan. They have been observed by the office of the Inspector General to be providing sub-par performance in both programmes. The qualification of personnel in the police programme have been called into question by the previous minister of Interior Jalili, as many of the police advisors have little experience.

[John Q. Citizen]

1. Privitazation = Facism. No accountability. No way to vote out the bums. n/t