The Dark Side of Peacekeeping: The Canadian Airborne Regiment in Somalia

  • Christi Siver
Chapter
First Online:

Abstract

In 1993, the Canadian peacekeeping operation in Somalia came under international scrutiny when a young Somali, Shidane Arone, was beaten to death. His killing cast a dark shadow over a Canadian mission that aimed to provide humanitarian assistance and ensure Canada’s international reputation as a promoter of human rights. Subsequent investigations revealed that 2 Commando, the unit that killed Arone, had been involved in several violent incidents with civilians. However, other Canadian units in similarly hostile conditions had offered comfort and assistance to civilians. After examining training records, enforcement of civilian protection norms, and unit subculture, the author finds that 2 Commando had developed a pernicious subculture that led them to quickly escalate situations to violence and endanger civilians. Although responsibility for Arone’s death was properly attributed to the members of the unit, failures in socialization, particularly in ignoring 2 Commando’s countercultural subculture, occurred throughout the chain of command.

Keywords

Peacekeeping Somalia Canada Detention Subculture 
This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access

References

  1. Amaral, Rui, and Mike Vernon. 2000. Eat Your Weakest Man: Inside the Canadian Airborne Regiment. Calgary, AB: Bunker to Bunker Publishing.Google Scholar
  2. Bercuson, David. 1996. Significant Incident: Canada’s Army, the Airborne, and the Murder in Somalia. Toronto, ON: McClelland and Stewart.Google Scholar
  3. Brodeur, Jean-Paul. 1997. Violence and Racial Prejudice in the Context of Peacekeeping (A Study prepared for the Commission of Inquiry into the Deployment of Canadian Forces to Somalia). Ottawa, ON: Minister of Public Works and Government Services.Google Scholar
  4. Cheney, Peter. 2004. Our Abu Ghraib. The Globe and Mail, 15 May. Accessed 11 June 2009.Google Scholar
  5. Commission of Inquiry into the Deployment of Canadian Forces to Somalia. 1997. Dishonoured Legacy: The Lessons of the Somalia Affair. Ottawa, ON: Minister of Public Works and Government Services.Google Scholar
  6. Dawson, Grant. 2007. ‘Here Is Hell’: Canada’s Engagement in Somalia. Vancouver, BC: UBC Press.Google Scholar
  7. Fenrick, W.J. 1991. International Legal Aspects of Canadian Forces Experience in the Recent Gulf Conflict 1991. Canadian Council on International Law.Google Scholar
  8. Flynn, Mike. 1993. Troops in Somalia: Mission Haunts Soldiers Still. The Ottawa Citizen, 4 September.Google Scholar
  9. Friedland, Martin L. 1996. Controlling Misconduct in the Military (A Study prepared for the Commission of Inquiry into the Deployment of Canadian Forces to Somalia). Ottawa, ON: Minister of Public Works and Government Services.Google Scholar
  10. Harrison, Deborah, and Lucie Laliberte. 1994. No Life Like It: Military Wives in Canada. Toronto, ON: James Lorimer & Company.Google Scholar
  11. Madsen, Chris. 1999. Another Kind of Justice: Canadian Military Law from Confederation to Somalia. Vancouver, BC: UBC Press.Google Scholar
  12. McDougall, Barbara. 1992. Canada and the New Internationalism. Canadian Foreign Policy 1 (1): 1–6.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  13. Metz, Troy Kenneth. 1997. The Training of the Canadian Military and the Somalia Affair. MA diss., University of Regina.Google Scholar
  14. Razack, Sherene. 2000. From the ‘Clean Snows of Petawawa’: The Violence of Canadian Peacekeepers in Somalia. Cultural Anthropology 15 (1): 127–163.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  15. ———. 2004. Dark Threats and White Knights: The Somalia Affair, Peacekeeping and the New Imperialism. Toronto, ON: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
  16. The Hamilton Spectator. 1994. Rules of War Joked About, Inquiry Told. The Hamilton Spectator, 4 June. Accessed 11 June 2009. http://www.global.factiva.com.
  17. Thompson, Allan. 1995. Airborne Regiment Axed in Disgrace. The Toronto Star, 24 January.Google Scholar
  18. ———. 1996a. Airborne Told to ‘Kill’ Somalis, Office Says. Six Days Later, Two People Were Shot, Military Report Reveals. The Toronto Star, 13 July. Accessed 11 June 2009.Google Scholar
  19. ———. 1996b. Major Tried to Soften Orders in Somalia. The Toronto Star, 25 September.Google Scholar
  20. ———. 1996c. Okay to Give Contract to Firm with Liberal Links. The Toronto Star, 26 September.Google Scholar
  21. ———. 1996d. Somalia Inquiry Abruptly Stopped, New Files Surface That Shed Light on Coverup Charges. The Toronto Star, 16 April.Google Scholar
  22. Watson, Paul. 1993. Tense Vigil in Somalia. The Toronto Star, 21 March. Accessed 11 June 2009.Google Scholar
  23. Winslow, Donna. 1997. The Canadian Airborne Regiment in Somalia: A Socio-Cultural Inquiry (A Study prepared for the Commission of Inquiry into the Deployment of Canadian Forces to Somalia). Ottawa, ON: Minister of Public Works and Government Services.Google Scholar
  24. Worthington, Peter, and Kyle Brown. 1997. Scapegoat: How the Army Betrayed Kyle Brown. Toronto, ON: Seal Books.Google Scholar

Copyright information

© The Author(s) 2018

Authors and Affiliations

  • Christi Siver
    • 1
  1. 1.Political Science DepartmentCollege of Saint BenedictCollegevilleUSA

Personalised recommendations