Eeben Barlow
Encyclopedia
Lt-Col. Eeben Barlow is a former member of the apartheid-era
South African Defence Force
and was the second-in-command of its elite special forces
32 Battalion
Reconnaissance Wing. He later served in Military Intelligence
as an agent handler and later as an operative and region commander in the ultra-secret Civil Cooperation Bureau
(CCB), a covert division of Special Forces. He founded the private military contractor (PMC) Executive Outcomes
(EO) in 1989, and was involved in providing counter-insurgency as well as peacekeeping forces to mainly under-developed—but mineral-rich—countries in Africa and Asia. Barlow left Executive Outcomes in mid-1997 and the company closed its doors on 31 December 1998. Barlow is currently an independent consultant but also lectures on military matters at defence colleges and universities.
, Barlow started his schooling in Francistown
, Botswana
and moved to South Africa
in the mid-1960s. After matriculating in 1972, he joined the SADF. He was commissioned in the SA Corps of Engineers where he served as the Engineer Commander for the 53 and 54 Infantry Battalions in the South West African Operational area. Barlow was recruited to serve with 32 Battalion
Special Forces
in Angola
. Although 32 Battalion operated independently, the SADF was supporting the UNITA
rebel movement (funded by Washington and Pretoria
). Subsequently, he was assigned to SADF's Directorate of Military Intelligence and then to the CCB
where he commanded Region 5, an area that encompassed Europe and the Middle East.
, Mozambique
, Swaziland
, Malawi
, Zimbabwe
or Zambia
where they were granted refuge and amnesty. Many of these refugees received military training in the USSR and its satellite states for the purpose of using force to overthrow the white South African government.
As a member of Military Intelligence, Barlow was tasked to infiltrate and penetrate these dissident elements to gather intelligence on their activities and planning. Later, as a member of the CCB
, Barlow’s region was tasked with disruption and intelligence gathering operations in Europe and the Middle East.
(EO). Executive Outcomes initially trained SADF Special Forces in covert operations and intelligence gathering. He was also contracted to establish and train a covert group for the De Beers diamond company in Botswana Debswana
with the aim of infiltrating and penetrating the illegal diamond-buying and smuggling syndicates.
In 1993, Barlow’s Executive Outcomes was contracted to provide security for Ranger Oil in the northern Angolan town of Soyo
where Ranger Oil were trying to recover drilling equipment stored on the harbour. The harbour, in turn, was under UNITA
rebel control. To achieve this, Barlow recruited men who had been retrenched from the SADF elite units as well as Koevoet
. Due to this contract, Executive Outcomes became a target for a campaign led mainly by South Africa’s Military Intelligence Division, the Department of Foreign Affairs and the media.
Shortly thereafter, Executive Outcomes was awarded the contract to assist the Angolan Armed Forces
(FAA) with training, strategic and tactical advice in an effort to end the war with UNITA. Despite a sustained negative campaign against it, Executive Outcomes accomplished its contract and within a year, UNITA had virtually been destroyed on the battlefield. This led to the signing of the Lusaka Protocols.
Executive Outcomes likewise assisted the Sierra Leonean government in destroying the rebel movement RUF
in that country.
Barlow and his company also assisted the Indonesian Special Forces
in the hostage-release operation in Irian Jaya in 1996.
Barlow was a keynote speaker during the establishment of the British Army’s rapid reaction forces. He also delivered a paper on the role of PMCs to the US Department of Defence in Washington.
Barlow publicly made it known that he supported a bill to regulate PMCs and Executive Outcomes provided several guidelines to the South African government during the formulation of a bill to regulate such companies.
Executive Outcomes was one of the first companies to be awarded a licence by the South African government to operate as a government-approved PMC Executive Outcomes, Against all odds.
The media finally apologised to Barlow in an article in The Star
newspaper dated 5 November 2007.
History of South Africa in the apartheid era
Apartheid was a system of racial segregation enforced by the National Party governments of South Africa between 1948 and 1994, under which the rights of the majority 'non-white' inhabitants of South Africa were curtailed and white supremacy and Afrikaner minority rule was maintained...
South African Defence Force
South African Defence Force
The South African Defence Force was the South African armed forces from 1957 until 1994. The former Union Defence Force was renamed to the South African Defence Force in the Defence Act of 1957...
and was the second-in-command of its elite special forces
Special forces
Special forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe elite military tactical teams trained to perform high-risk dangerous missions that conventional units cannot perform...
32 Battalion
South African 32 Battalion
32 Battalion was a special light infantry battalion of the South African Army, composed of black and white commissioned and enlisted personnel...
Reconnaissance Wing. He later served in Military Intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
as an agent handler and later as an operative and region commander in the ultra-secret Civil Cooperation Bureau
Civil Cooperation Bureau
The South African Civil Cooperation Bureau was a government-sponsored hit squad during the apartheid era that operated under the authority of Defence Minister General Magnus Malan...
(CCB), a covert division of Special Forces. He founded the private military contractor (PMC) Executive Outcomes
Executive Outcomes
Executive Outcomes was a private military company founded in South Africa by former Lieutenant-Colonel of the South African Defence Force Eeben Barlow in 1989. It later became part of the South African-based holding company Strategic Resource Corporation....
(EO) in 1989, and was involved in providing counter-insurgency as well as peacekeeping forces to mainly under-developed—but mineral-rich—countries in Africa and Asia. Barlow left Executive Outcomes in mid-1997 and the company closed its doors on 31 December 1998. Barlow is currently an independent consultant but also lectures on military matters at defence colleges and universities.
Military background
Born in ZambiaZambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
, Barlow started his schooling in Francistown
Francistown
Francistown or Nyangabgwe is the second largest city in Botswana, with a population of about 85,363, and often described as the "Capital of the North". It is located in eastern Botswana, about north-northeast from the capital, Gaborone...
, Botswana
Botswana
Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...
and moved to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
in the mid-1960s. After matriculating in 1972, he joined the SADF. He was commissioned in the SA Corps of Engineers where he served as the Engineer Commander for the 53 and 54 Infantry Battalions in the South West African Operational area. Barlow was recruited to serve with 32 Battalion
South African 32 Battalion
32 Battalion was a special light infantry battalion of the South African Army, composed of black and white commissioned and enlisted personnel...
Special Forces
Special forces
Special forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe elite military tactical teams trained to perform high-risk dangerous missions that conventional units cannot perform...
in Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
. Although 32 Battalion operated independently, the SADF was supporting the UNITA
UNITA
The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola is the second-largest political party in Angola. Founded in 1966, UNITA fought with the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola in the Angolan War for Independence and then against the MPLA in the ensuing civil war .The war was one...
rebel movement (funded by Washington and Pretoria
Pretoria
Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive and de facto national capital; the others are Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital.Pretoria is...
). Subsequently, he was assigned to SADF's Directorate of Military Intelligence and then to the CCB
Civil Cooperation Bureau
The South African Civil Cooperation Bureau was a government-sponsored hit squad during the apartheid era that operated under the authority of Defence Minister General Magnus Malan...
where he commanded Region 5, an area that encompassed Europe and the Middle East.
Paramilitary
In the mid-1980s a large number of South African militants (predominantly black) escaped the country by crossing South Africa’s borders into BotswanaBotswana
Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...
, Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
, Swaziland
Swaziland
Swaziland, officially the Kingdom of Swaziland , and sometimes called Ngwane or Swatini, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa, bordered to the north, south and west by South Africa, and to the east by Mozambique...
, Malawi
Malawi
The Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size...
, Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
or Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
where they were granted refuge and amnesty. Many of these refugees received military training in the USSR and its satellite states for the purpose of using force to overthrow the white South African government.
As a member of Military Intelligence, Barlow was tasked to infiltrate and penetrate these dissident elements to gather intelligence on their activities and planning. Later, as a member of the CCB
CCB
CCB may refer to:In Asian economics:* China Construction Bank, one of the 'big four' banks in the People's Republic of China* China Construction Bank , a licensed bank incorporated in Hong KongIn Australian schools:...
, Barlow’s region was tasked with disruption and intelligence gathering operations in Europe and the Middle East.
Mercenary
In 1989, Barlow established the company Executive OutcomesExecutive Outcomes
Executive Outcomes was a private military company founded in South Africa by former Lieutenant-Colonel of the South African Defence Force Eeben Barlow in 1989. It later became part of the South African-based holding company Strategic Resource Corporation....
(EO). Executive Outcomes initially trained SADF Special Forces in covert operations and intelligence gathering. He was also contracted to establish and train a covert group for the De Beers diamond company in Botswana Debswana
Debswana
Debswana Diamond Company Ltd, or simply Debswana, is a giant mining company located in Botswana, and is the world's leading producer of diamonds by value. Debswana is a joint venture between the government of Botswana and the South African diamond company De Beers; each party owns 50 percent of...
with the aim of infiltrating and penetrating the illegal diamond-buying and smuggling syndicates.
In 1993, Barlow’s Executive Outcomes was contracted to provide security for Ranger Oil in the northern Angolan town of Soyo
Soyo
Soyo is a city located in the province of Zaire in Angola. Soyo recently became the largest oil-producing region in the country, with an estimate of .-Early history:...
where Ranger Oil were trying to recover drilling equipment stored on the harbour. The harbour, in turn, was under UNITA
UNITA
The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola is the second-largest political party in Angola. Founded in 1966, UNITA fought with the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola in the Angolan War for Independence and then against the MPLA in the ensuing civil war .The war was one...
rebel control. To achieve this, Barlow recruited men who had been retrenched from the SADF elite units as well as Koevoet
Koevoet
Koevoet , also known as "Operation K" and officially known as the "South West Africa Police Counter-Insurgency Unit" , was a police counter insurgency unit in South-West Africa during the 1970s and 1980s...
. Due to this contract, Executive Outcomes became a target for a campaign led mainly by South Africa’s Military Intelligence Division, the Department of Foreign Affairs and the media.
Shortly thereafter, Executive Outcomes was awarded the contract to assist the Angolan Armed Forces
Angolan Armed Forces
The Angolan Armed Forces are the military in Angola that succeeded Forças Armadas de Libertação de Angola following the abortive Bicesse Accord with UNITA in 1991. As part of the peace agreement, troops from both armies were to be demilitarized and then integrated. Integration was never completed...
(FAA) with training, strategic and tactical advice in an effort to end the war with UNITA. Despite a sustained negative campaign against it, Executive Outcomes accomplished its contract and within a year, UNITA had virtually been destroyed on the battlefield. This led to the signing of the Lusaka Protocols.
Executive Outcomes likewise assisted the Sierra Leonean government in destroying the rebel movement RUF
Revolutionary United Front
The Revolutionary United Front was a rebel army that fought a failed eleven-year war in Sierra Leone, starting in 1991 and ending in 2002. It later developed into a political party, which existed until 2007...
in that country.
Barlow and his company also assisted the Indonesian Special Forces
Kopassus
Kopassus is an Indonesian Army special forces group that conducts special operations missions for the Indonesian government, such as direct action, unconventional warfare, sabotage, counter-insurgency, counter-terrorism, and intelligence gathering.Kopassus was founded on April 16, 1952...
in the hostage-release operation in Irian Jaya in 1996.
Barlow was a keynote speaker during the establishment of the British Army’s rapid reaction forces. He also delivered a paper on the role of PMCs to the US Department of Defence in Washington.
Barlow publicly made it known that he supported a bill to regulate PMCs and Executive Outcomes provided several guidelines to the South African government during the formulation of a bill to regulate such companies.
Executive Outcomes was one of the first companies to be awarded a licence by the South African government to operate as a government-approved PMC Executive Outcomes, Against all odds.
The media finally apologised to Barlow in an article in The Star
The Star (South Africa)
The Star is a daily newspaper based in Gauteng, South Africa. It has a readership of 840 000 and is owned by Independent News & Media. It gained worldwide attention in 2006 when it published survey results according to which about twenty percent of South African men have raped a woman in...
newspaper dated 5 November 2007.
External links
- A new kind of army for privatized global warfare
- East Timor and West Papua
- Northbridge Services Group
- Galago Publishing Company Eeben Barlow, "Executive Outcomes: Against All Odds" - Autobiography released June 17, 2007
- Eeben Barlow's Military and Security Blog (Barlow's current personal blog)