Faculty News

"In the Line of Fire"

An op-ed by anthropology faculty member Noah Coburn in the Kathmandu Post warns of the growing risks for international security contractors—particularly those from Nepal—being hired by private companies to assist the Afghan military in an increasingly unstable region.

Nepali Contractors

Author of Labouring Under Fire: Nepali Security Contractors in Afghanistan, Coburn writes:

"While conducting interviews in Nepal, one of the things that I found was that many Nepalis working in Afghanistan are often not provided with the right equipment or support. Working for a company that does not have direct support of the US military can leave workers exposed if they are attacked by the Taliban. Brokers and representatives of some companies in Nepal, or larger centres like Delhi and Dubai, will often lie to potential recruits and mislead them about some of the risks they will face in Afghanistan."