The owners of a security firm connected to the illegal Libyan military training camp in White River, Mpumalanga, have been placed under suspension.
The owners of Milites Dei Security Services (MDSS) were suspended on Wednesday morning, according to Manabela Chauke, the director of the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (Psira).
According to Chauke, the national regulator for conventional arms control did not grant permission, agreement, or exemptions for MDSS to help with the training of Libyan nationals.
They were therefore found to have broken both criminal laws and the code of conduct for companies that provide private security services.
Charges and prosecution considered
“The next process is the consideration of charges and formal prosecution of the service providers and individuals involved for the contravention of the code of conduct and criminal charges,” said Chauke.
He said that the accredited facility has not changed since the authority’s standard inspection eleven months ago.
The 95 Libyan nationals who were detained at the illegal training facility, they found out, were situated 7.5km from the camp that was officially registered.
He said MDSS was approved to train security personnel at Grades E through C and was registered with the relevant authority. The duration of the training is typically four weeks.
Chauke reported that they found evidence of MDSS abusing its licence by failing to follow Psira regulations.
“The duration of the training conducted by MDSS takes longer than our local security training programmes,” Chauke said.
“The nature of the training included extensive physical activities with military-styled structures. Investigations also uncovered instructors who were not accredited by the authority.
“These trainers were used by military ranks, which further reaffirms the nature of training that was being conducted at the training facility.”
Contravention of immigration laws
Because the Libyan military training camp lacked accredited training for local security grades, he declared it to be illegal.
Both the owners and the Libyan students had broken immigration laws, and the instructors were not citizens of South Africa.
“We align ourselves with the principles in our constitution, which mandates the safeguarding of national security through adherence to the law and democratic values.
“Complementing these principles, the Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act 15 of 1998 strictly controls foreign military assistance, preventing unauthorised military activities within our borders.
“The authority is empowered to enforce the law in the event of a violation of the above legislation within the private security industry,” he said.
