ABSTRACT
This chapter explains what the norm against mercenary use is, where it came from, how it has influenced the regulation of private force, and whether or not it has been challenged by the widespread use of private force today. It defines and traces the evolution of the anti-mercenary norm, and then discusses how the anti-mercenary norm played into debates about regulating mercenaries in the 1970s. The chapter explains how the rapidly evolving private security industry was met with equally rapidly changing regulation, and considers how the anti-mercenary norm played into this debate. It also considers how the industry's development both challenged and was shaped by the anti-mercenary norm, examining the appearance of private military companies such as Sandline in the 1990s and the proliferation of private security during the Iraq War of 2003 and afterwards. It is simply no longer the case that 'real states' do not use private force.
