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“Surveillance of the Surveillers”: Regulation of the Private Security Industry in South Africa and Kenya

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 August 2016

Tessa Diphoorn
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Abstract:

The growth of the private security industry on the African continent has resulted in an expanding labor force engaged in surveillance-type activities. This article analyzes various levels of regulation of private security officers as a form of surveillance. Based on qualitative methodology, it compares the numerous regulatory efforts implemented by the state, industry, and companies of the private security industry in Kenya and South Africa and shows that although different, they essentially share the ultimate aim of controlling private security officers, i.e., to implement a means of “surveillance of the surveillers.”

Résumé:

La croissance de l’industrie de la sécurité privée sur le continent africain a donné lieu à une main-d’œuvre en expansion engagée dans des activités de type de surveillance. Cet article analyse les différents niveaux de réglementation des agents de sécurité privés comme forme de surveillance. Basé sur la méthodologie qualitative, il compare les nombreux efforts de réglementation mis en œuvre par l’État, l’industrie et les entreprises de l’industrie de sécurité privée au Kenya et en Afrique du Sud et montre que, bien que différents, ils partagent tous essentiellement le but ultime de contrôler les agents de sécurité privés, à savoir, de mettre en œuvre un moyen de “surveillance des surveillants.”

Keywords

Surveillanceregulationprivate securitySouth AfricaKenya
Type
ASR FORUM ON SURVEILLANCE IN AFRICA: POLITICS, HISTORIES, TECHNIQUES
Information
African Studies Review , Volume 59 , Issue 2 , September 2016 , pp. 161 - 182
Copyright
Copyright © African Studies Association 2016 

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