SA selling weapons in Iraq?

2005-09-01 11:35

Erika Gibson

Pretoria - Government wants to ban South Africans from working in Iraq and prosecute those who do but it now seems as if government is benefiting secretly from selling military technology to American and British companies in Iraq.

Armoured vehicles have even been sold to the American army - while the South African government's stance is that Iraq should be seen as a conflict area and the USA and its coalition partners as party to this conflict.

These details came to light in the United Nations' arms register in which all member countries that export heavy military hardware have to declare that they are doing so.

South Africa recently declared its arms sales for the 2004 calendar year to the UN. According to these figures, 18 Casspir and Nyala armoured vehicles were sold to the American defence force and private companies, while 6 Mamba armoured vehicles were told to a British company.

The details showed the vehicles were to be deployed in Iraq - a factor that must have been considered before the South African National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC) approved any sales.

At least one of the American companies is involved in erecting military installations in Iraq.

Several South African ministers are on record as saying the Foreign Military Assistance Act bans the provision of any military or other assistance - including equipment, logistic support or staff. Under the act, military support includes providing protection services for individuals, buildings or properties. Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota said earlier this stipulation was reason enough to prosecute South Africans working in Iraq.

Aziz Pahad, deputy minister of foreign affairs, also said earlier government is looking at laws that can be used to prevent South Africans in Iraq from being part of the conflict situation.

Henri Boshoff of the Institute for Security Studies said South Africa had to decide whether it wanted to be part of the international trend where private military expertise in conflict areas are allowed or whether it wanted to go against the tide.

While it could be argued the equipment sold to the American and British companies are used for humanitarian assistance, the same can be said for South Africans protecting construction sites where schools and hospitals are being built in Iraq.

In several of the UN's peace missions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in the Sudan, private contractors are used to provide logistic support to military forces.

Boshoff said the sale of South African military equipment boiled down to double standards. Professor Hussein Solomon of the University of Pretoria's centre for international studies, said South Africa also sold weapons in the past to India and Pakistan. The two countries have been at war over the Kashmir area.

- Beeld