Half Monk, Half Hitman: Applying Just War Theory to Private Military and Security Companies in the Context of Humanitarian Intervention

Authors

• Robert J. Peters

Abstract

In Part II, this Article will discuss potential benefits of private military companies. Part III will address and acknowledge criticisms of PMSCs. Part IV provides a brief legal context, and Part V will discuss the just war theory criteria relevant to PMSCs in the context of humanitarian intervention. This section will examine why PMSC humanitarian intervention may be permissible in certain circumstances. The PMSC Executive Outcomes will serve as a dual case study; on the one hand, it would have been authorized by just war theory to contract with the United Nations to intervene in Rwanda. However, Executive Outcomes also considered contracting with the Hutu government, the perpetrators of the genocide, which would be a gross violation of just war theory. Part VI will argue for the express integration of just war criteria into PMSC operating guidelines; this is crucial for the moral, political, and perhaps legal legitimacy of PMSC actors.

Recommended Citation

Peters, Robert J. (2021) "Half Monk, Half Hitman: Applying Just War Theory to Private Military and Security Companies in the Context of Humanitarian Intervention," Florida Journal of International Law: Vol. 28: Iss. 2, Article 2.
Available at: https://scholarship.law.ufl.edu/fjil/vol28/iss2/2