FROM DEFENCE TO DEVELOPMENT This page intentionally left blank FROM DEFENCE TO DEVELOPMENT Redirecting Military Resources in South Africa Jacklyn Cock and Penny Mckenzie for The Group for Environmental Monitoring David Philip Cape Town International Development Research Centre Ottawa, Canada First published in 1998 in Africa by David Philip Publishers (Pty) Ltd, 208 Werdmuller Centre, Claremont 7700, South Africa First published in 1998 in the rest of the world by the International Development Research Centre, PO Box 8500, Ottawa, ON, Canada K1E 3H9 ISBN 86486 415 9 (David Philip) ISBN 0 88936 853 8 (IDRC) Compilation © 1998 Jacklyn Cock and Penny Mckenzie The contributors claim copyright on their individual chapters All rights reserved. Printed in South Africa by National Book Printers, Drukkery Street, Goodwood, Western Cape Canadian Cataloguing in Publication Data Cock, Jacklyn From defence to development: redirecting military resources in South Africa Includes bibliographical references ISBN 0-88936-853-8 1. Militarism South Africa. 2. South Africa Military policy. 3. South Africa National security. 4. Sustainable development South Africa. I. Mckenzie, Penny. II. International Development Research Centre (Canada). III. Title. IV. Title: Redirecting military resources in South Africa. UA856.5C621998 355.6 0968 C98-980043-1 CONTENTS Foreword Thenjiwe Mtintso vii Acknowledgements vii List of contributors xi 1. Introduction Jacklyn Cock 1 2. Guns or Butter? Growth, Development and Security Gavin Cawthra 25 3. The 1996 Defence White Paper: An Agenda for State Demilitarisation? Laurie Nathan 41 4. Reclaiming the Land: A Case Study of Riemvasmaak Penny Mckenzie 60 5. Weapons testing: Its impact on people and the Environment Penny Mckenzie 85 6. South Africs arms industry: Prospects for Conversion Peter Batchelor 97 7. Light weapons proliferation: The link between security and development Jacklyn Cock 122 8. Still killing: Land-mines in Southern Africa Alex Vines 148 9. Apartheis nuclear arsenal: Deviation from development David Fig 163 10. After the war: Demobilisation in South Africa Tsepe Motumi and Penny Mckenzie 181 11. Demobilisation and reintegration in society: Human resources conversion Rocky Williams 208 12. Militarised youth: Political pawns or social agents? Monique Marks and Penny Mckenzie 222 References 235 Index 244 10 AFTER THE WAR Demobilisation in South Africa Tsepe Motumi and Penny Mckenzie Five million soldiers across the world have lost their jobs since 1990: the end of the Cold War resulted in defence budget cuts and the downsizing of defence forces. Internationally, personnel in armed forces have been reduced from 29 million in 1987, to 24,1 million in 1994 (BICC, 1996:144). The southern African region is no exception. Zimbabwe, Namibia and Mozambique have demobilised thousands of soldiers, and South Africa and Angola are in the process of demobilisation. Properly planned and managed demobilisation is important for rebuilding post-conflict societies. Demobilisation is an opportunity to bolster development. It can reduce defence expenditure and free resources for development, thereby contributing to the process of demilitarisation. Demobilisation which fails to provide for the social integration of ex-combatants poses a potential threat to society through increased political and social instability. If ex-combatants cannot find work there is a danger that they will fall back on what is often the only skill they have the use of weapons resulting in increased crime and possible insurrection. In post-conflict societies, the availability of weapons makes this a more acute danger. Demobilised ex-combatants in Namibia, Mozambique, Angola and Zimbabwe have already been a source of instability (Cock, 1993). The key argument of this chapter is that South Africa s demobilisation process, which was aimed solely at soldiers from the liberation armies, has not effectively provided for the reintegration of ex-combatants into society. In view of the relatively small numbers of people demobilised, it is unlikely that there will be any major social or political ramifications, but if the problems with demobilisation are repeated in the rationalisation process, which may involve ten times the number of people, the consequences may be dire. Demobilisation has been poorly planned, badly executed and wholly inadequate in meeting the needs of ex-combatants. It has failed to take into account some of the lessons learnt from demobilisation processes in other develop- It s the story of every war, soldiers are forgotten, that s what happens after war, society carries on and people get left behind. It s a problem which cuts across armies. Interview with defence expert, 1996 Demobilised soldier in Mozambique (Photo by Ross Douglas) ing countries and, in fact, repeated some of the more obvious mistakes. The chapter is divided into four sections. It begins by defining demobilisation and briefly highlights some of the lessons learnt from international experience. It then explains how South Africa s concept of demobilisation is different from conventional definitions. The second section looks at the integration of eight armed forces into the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), as demobilisation was integrally linked to integration. The third and fourth sections critically examine the Service Corps (SC), set up to deal with the social reintegration of ex-combatants. Defining demobilisation Demobilisation is the significant reduction of people employed by the military and their reintegration into civilian life. It includes the reduction of the size of regular military and paramilitary forces, as well as the number of civilian personnel employed by the armed forces (BICC, 1996:144-6). Demobilisation occurs for a range of reasons: the end of a conflict, disarmament agreements, shortage of funds, development imperatives, and changing military technologies or strategies (BICC, 1996:153). The process often involves the physical demobilisation of the soldier from the military with some short-term assistance, and a longer-term social reintegration process. HOMER S ODYSSEY AND WAR VETERANS Homer s Odyssey or Ulysses is a classic description of how societies treat their war veterans . Too often nations send their best sons to battle at Troy. Just as frequently, as soon as peace succeeds the clangour of strife, two attitudes develop in the homeland. Suitors discard rapidly (if they ever held them) feelings of obligation and gratitude to veterans. Penelope, however, remains loyal. When the veteran Ulysses returns, feelings of mutual animosity spring up between him and the suitors. The clash generates bad feelings that persist long after the veterans wreak their vengeance; full tranquillity can come only long after the initial return (Ross, 1969:2). The real conversion challenge lies in the area of long-term social reintegration. Ex-combatants who have spent most of their lives in the military have to find employment and reintegrate into civilian life. This is a complex process involving social, material and psychological aspects. The nature of demobilisation packages is dependent on the socio-economic conditions of a particular country and the needs of the people to be demobilised. Demobilisation packages may include financial assistance, educational assistance, psychological counselling, skills training, human resource conversion, career counselling and job placement, and assistance in securing accommodation. The need far demobilisation Why should ex-combatants be targeted for social assistance? This is a particularly pertinent question in countries where there are millions of other people in social need and demobilisation benefits may be seen as divisive. In a letter to a Zimbabwean newspaper, a reader asked if, in terms of Maoist theory, guerrillas were meant to be fish swimming in the waters of the people , whether it was now acceptable for the fish to jump out of the water? (Ranger, cited in Cock, 1993:50). Does privileging ex-combatants reinforce the privileged position of the military, which is antithetical to a demilitarisation agenda? There are strong arguments, from a demilitarisation perspective, for comprehensive demobilisation packages which provide for effective reintegration. Successful demobilisation which is linked to a broader programme of reconstruction and peace building can facilitate development at both the individual and the macro level. From a more negative viewpoint, there are risks and security concerns in not providing for the effective reintegration of soldiers into civilian life. TRUST ME, I M A MERCENARY : THE LETHAL DANGERS OF MERCENARIES IN AFRICA Laurie Nathan Since 1992, there has been a resurgence of mercenary activity in civil wars in Africa. One of the most prominent mercenary groups is Executive Outcomes, a South African company which reportedly employs 2 000 former soldiers. It has been active in reclaiming the Soyo oil field in Angola for Heritage Oil and Gas, and in supporting the governments of Angola and Sierra Leone against rebel groups. Executive Outcomes has generated much local and international controversy. In its defence, the organisation argues that it only works for legitimate governments and has made an important contribution to peace and stability in Angola and Sierra Leone. This argument ignores completely the deadly problem associated with mercenaries. Mercenaries can be defined as soldiers who are hired by a foreign government or rebel movement to contribute to the prosecution of armed