The Gendered and Colonial Lives of Gurkhas in Private Security

Abstract

Explores the ways in which affect, colonial histories, and militarism organise global South security workforces within private military and security companies Advances the concept of militarism through empirically rich ethnographic insights of militarised communities outside the global North Offers feminist political economy insights into how labour is organised and sustained through global security regimes Draws upon 180 detailed interviews and 3 years of ethnographic fieldwork in Nepal and Kabul Afghanistan This book explores the ways in which affect, colonial histories, and militarism organise global security workforces within private military and security companies (PMSCs). It locates its analysis with Gurkhas; a group of militarised men from Nepal with over 200-years of military experience with the British and Indian armies and the Singaporean police, who now participate as security contractors in global markets. These men are celebrated in British popular culture for their heroic martial attributes and their broader military service to the United Kingdom. However, less known, is the fact that many Gurkhas located back in Nepal and their families are drawn into these markets under often exploitative relations. Drawing upon over a decade of ethnographic fieldwork with unprecedented access to these security communities throughout Nepal and in Afghanistan, the book’s motivating questions are how security is made through these market relations and how is this security experienced by Gurkhas and their families.