| Popis: |
This chapter examines warlords engaged in the plundering of mines located in captured sub-state regions—the so-called “black holes” in remote regions of developing countries. Warlords exert violent and capricious de facto rule over black holes using militarized violence, along with a mixture of ethno-religious grievances, patronage payments, and charisma in order to pilfer mineral resources with impunity. Their domination of these lucrative mining enclaves has visited misery and chaos upon local populations, stripped states of needed development funds, and despoiled local ecosystems for future generations. This chapter contributes to an understanding of organized crime and the manner in which warlords should be conceptualized as such. It also furthers an understanding of how and why mining regions are subjected to warlord control. It begins with a theoretical discussion of warlords and examines why they often dominate mining regions. It then examines warlords’ strategies for capturing mining enclaves and turning them into black holes. Finally, it explores exemplars of warlords who control lucrative mining enclaves in Afghanistan and the Central African Republic (CAR). |
