About Me

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I saw active service in conventional, clandestine and covert units of the South African Defence Force. I was the founder of the Private Military Company (PMC) Executive Outcomes in 1989 and its chairman until I left in 1997. Until its closure in 1998, EO operated primarily in Africa helping African governments that had been abandoned by the West and were facing threats from insurgencies, terrorism and organised crime. EO also operated in South America and the Far East. I believe that only Africans (Black and White) can truly solve Africa’s problems. I was appointed Chairman of STTEP International in 2009 and also lecture at military colleges and universities in Africa on defence, intelligence and security issues. Prior to the STTEP International appointment, I served as an independent politico-military advisor to several African governments. Until recently, I was a contributing editor to The Counter Terrorist magazine. All comments in line with the topics on this blog are welcome. As I consider this to be a serious look at military and security matters, foul language and political or religious debates will not be entertained on this blog.

Monday, June 11, 2012

MY EARLY DEMISE...BY EOPS


Thanks to Jason for alerting me to this bunch of clowns.

To quote Mark Twain, “The rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated”.

I may have been unable to respond to comments or even to update my blog, but that is due to work-related activities and has nothing to do with my early demise.

However, not so according to Florida-based US company Executive Outcomes Protection Services (EOPS) who, with a few strokes across the keyboard, have killed me.

On their website (www.eopssecurity.com) under company history, EOPS states (unedited) the following:

Our Inspirational founder, the late Colonel Eeben Barlow founded executive outcomes in 1989. A private military contractor (PMC) company. The company acquires notoriety by its professionalism and dedication and by the year 1994/1995 rescuing and returning the constitutional power to the government of Sierra Leone and Angola.

Whereas there are many who would no doubt rejoice at my early demise, I think there are equally some governments that may be concerned as I still need to assist them with some matters. After all, who would want to use a dead guy to provide advice? Besides, I could have killed myself by laughing so much that I fell off my chair and broke my neck laughing.

Sadly EOPS did not do any homework before they decided to pose as a reborn EO. Not only did they get their dates wrong, they also posted photos of obviously well-fed guards. I don’t recall any EO men looking that well fed!

It is said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery but EOPS are elevating it to a new level.

I wonder if these scoundrels are going to submit my posthumous profits to my family?

Regardless, I am so tired of conmen and posers trying to claim their role in the actions of good men. I can only hope that their clients realise that EOPS are being totally untruthful in their claims.

However, it would be nice if mdominguez@eopssecurity.com would contact me and explain my death to me.

30 comments:

Unknown said...

Eerie, spooky, i just got chills up my arm. You must have mailed me from the other side! Holy Kamoly are there no intelligent people left in the world?
It is truly amazing how dilly people really are, first its the press tthen it was that hack Haseldine and now its a rip off bunch that cannot seem to get a single solitary fact correct. Hell i doubt whether they actually know which planet they are on!

Incredulous! Oh if you are dead, please pass my regards onto Elvis. thanks:
Mike
ps: maybe you could arrive on their doorstep by surprise and claim it to be your second coming and you command they pay you an insane amount of money to ensure their entrance into the forever hereafter.

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

I try not to be too surprised, Mike. Sometimes though, it is very difficult to bite my tongue especially when I meet people who claim to be me – and then try to convince me that they are indeed me.

There are a lot of companies/people passing themselves off as the “new EO” and so forth. I know of a few across the world – in the US, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and so forth. I find it hard to accept that some people will actually try to take credit for something they never did.

If ever I meet Elvis, I will send him your best.

Rgds,

Eeben

Unknown said...

I wish i met someone who says they were me. i would gladly let them have all my debt, my sorrows, misery, bad luck, lack of money and hell, i would even chuck in my ex wife!

They say we all have a doppelganger somewhere in the world, you on the other hand are suprememly fortunate and have an entire clone army claiming to be you! I must admit that i am suitably jealous that i may only have one and with my luck he is probably languishing in a third world jail somewhere.
maybe its time to start suing for intellectual property theft and infingement for using your name, company name and making references to you in order to secure contracts of their own. It could be quite a nifty "passive income" of sorts.
Good men died in the service of your company and their names stand eternal testament on a memorial tto their bracey and commitment. Then these shallow end of the gene pool types arive and sully those mens sacrifice and try to swindle a buck out of your company, i believe that could be looked at and considered as theft to a degree. All these Executive Outtcomes clones(clowns) out there who mention you by name anywhere in their marketing or advertising or on their ridiculous web page "about us" blurb should be liable to pay a royalty, it works like that in the music industry afterall. Each contract EOPS secures should see your bank balance raise a few bucks.

best regards. Mike Da Silva ( the real one and very much alive)

Owi said...

I think this kind of thing is an absolute disgrace. Pretty soon there will soo much misinformation about EO that people will no longer know what the real story is.

It is just outright lazy for an individual to sit down and create a lie based on other peoples accomplishments.

Have you considered taking legal action against these people. Make them pay some millions and put them out of business.

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

It is not as much fun as it sounds, Mike!

Of course using the name/reputation is a form of theft – as well as fraud and purposeful deception. As for suing these people, doing so form Africa will get me no-where and I suspect they know it. Perhaps I ought to find a good US-based attorney.

It really makes me mad to think that good men, some who died, are having their reputations used to secure contracts. More than anything else, that peeves me no end.

Rgds,

Eeben

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

It certainly is a disgrace Owi. Sadly, the world has many people who aim to deceive and exploit the unwitting.

Trying to take legal action from SA would be a non-starter and these clowns probably know it. Also, there are many other companies who claim they are the real EO – a new one that has appeared on my radar is based in Czechoslovakia.

Rgds,

Eeben

Unknown said...

please excuse my spelling in the previous thread. I had a temporary slip from normality. I do sometimes tend to discombobulate when i get annoyed by posers like these fake individuals.

Securing the services of an American law firm might just be the way to go, however you may then have to secure the services of a Barrister in the UK,New Zealand,Australia and where ever else a fake crowd pop up next like gophers in the yard.

Eventually the lines will be so blurred by the fakers and posers out there that your non fiction book could risk becoming classified as fiction and their lies as truth.

Nip it in the bud, it is your legacy, effort and money that went into creating a name that is now being sullied and bastardised by these strokers all wanting to make a quick buck at your expense, expertise and experience.
with all the supposed Eeben`s out there i fear that if i ever bumped into you that i would in all honesty not be sure if it is in fact you or someone posing as you. Afterall, the last time i saw you was in the offices in Danny street back in 1993.

i understand how this is very disconcerting for you and how each wally out there that further tarnishes your name must annoy the crap out of you. I truly believe that action should be taken with at least one of these idiots so as to make an example of them and subtly change others minds who may be thinking of plagiarising your name and experiences as you have written in your book. In my humble opinion, you let Patrick Haseldine off the hook way too easily. The trash he spoke of you on open forums without investigting his allegations before publishing slanderous and libellous comments was in my mind highly illegal. What if the shoe was on the other foot and you had posted fantabulous claims before investigating the situation? i am quite sure he would have sued you and with that in mind maybe it is time to bring out the big guns and put a halt to these tickey line outfits like the one in Florida or Disney land or wherever they are based and sue for reparations due emotional pain and anguish your family endured due the report of your demise.

mike

Unknown said...

There are no adequate words to describe people who work in this way. My greetings to Colonel Barlow

ken borr said...

Glad you're okay. You write better than Mark Twain.

regards ken

Unknown said...

Eeben,

I have random question about the book you wrote entitled: Executive Outcomes: Against All Odds. Is there an affordable alternative to ordering it on Amazon?


thanks,

Carl from California

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

Absolutely agree with you, Salvatore.

My best to you as well.

Eeben

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

My family seem to be equally pleased (sometimes) that I am still around, Ken.

As for Mark Twain...I appreciate your kind words but I know that you wrote it tongue-in-cheek.

Rgds,

Eeben

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

Thanks for your interest in the book, Carl.

I do not know how it is currently being marketed as I am not the publisher. I am told that it is very costly outside of SA. My suggestion would be for you to contact the publisher and buy directly from him.

Let me know if that works.

Rgds,

Eeben

PS: Just received your other mail a few moments ago...due to work-related pressures, I get to my blog when I can. Sorry I didn’t answer sooner.

Robin said...

Hi Eeben,

So, my question is simple - on the EOPS website it says "We at Executive Outcomes refuse the current trend IF SINGING a client and then allowing the quality of service to drop, leaving the client feeling deceived." So are they refusing to sing for a client? Are they a band? Are they singers? Ok, let's just call them "The Posers". What a bunch of amateurs!

Maybe somewhere, your reputation preceded you and they shut the pearly gates when they saw you coming and sent you back.

Cheers
Robin

Unknown said...

it seems that there is no lights on at EOPS. even after mailing them thrice, they still have not amended their blurb. just how incompetent are these chops?

maybe it is time to start posting that EOPS`s owner M Dominguez is deceased and the company is apparently in foreclosure with all monies paid by clients to be forfeited and no alternate arranements will be entered into. that is a guerilla tactic and would undoubtately chuck the cat squarely among the pigeons.

i naturally wont do this,,, yet but if i find out if my email account was hacked by these clowns on patrol i will launch an all out campaign. my email was hacked and a trojan horse was sent to me and all my contacts! this is an annoyance of the highest order and i have since deleted all my contact lists and sanitise my list everytime i send a mail (except when i send mails to Mr Dominguez of course), if it is them that spammed me i hope they try again and end up "shooting" themelves in the digital foot.

i hope you are considering forcing these posers to remove erroneous information placed on their site pertaining to your "death". it really just is not cricket.
regards Mike.

Gatvol said...

Eeben,
I went to the website and other than using your name, have no fear. This is just a group of "Door Shakers' Scrambling for business in "Floridia". Im sure the majority there got thier education via Comic Books.

Unknown said...

Bloody hell, these people really have no shame. The fact that they think they can get away with this sort of thing (not only masquerading as you but also as EO itself and indeed killing you off outright) raises some worrying questions about not only them but also the people who might hire them. Anyone looking for security contractors or anyone similar, who can't spend a few minutes Googling them first, really shouldn't be in charge of such decisions.

Anyway, very glad to know you're still with us. I hadn't heard this particular rumour until I checked your blog, so I'll continue to use it as my first point of call if I need updates!

Also a minor warning; I'm trying to get details of South African culture and military details as accurate as possible for my book but should I be unable to secure information anywhere else I MAY trouble you with the odd query in future. I'll do my best to read the blog quietly though!

All the best

(And stay alive...)

Alex

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

Some clowns are best left to act in their own circus, Mike.

At the end of the day, it is for them to prove their allegations, not me.

As for Haseldine – the matter is not over by a long shot. Obviously, it is not a matter of picking up a phone and doing what needs to be done. Some things take more time to do correctly.

Rgds,

Eeben

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

They are, apart from conmen and fools, complete idiots who seem unable to string a decent sentence together Robin.

As for their singing ability as opposed to contract signing – I won’t be looking for their music any day soon.

Rgds,

Eeben

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

I am led to believe that numerous folks have written to them, Mike. But it appears as though although the wheel is spinning, the hamsters are dead. I am waiting to hear if they have responded to any of the emails they received.

I note that your mails had come through as infected. Good thing you got it sorted out.

Rgds,

Eeben

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

I know you are correct, Gatvol.

Someone once told me that if I tried to stop everyone who claims they “were EO”, I ‘d be busy for years. Initially I didn’t believe that comment but now I do.

Yes, comics seem to breed the type of intellect EOPS has.

Rgds,

Eeben

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

There are many who wish that what EOPS posted on their website is true, Alex. But then again, I prefer to be judged by the enemies I have made. Scratch below the surface and you will know why they are worried.

I try to stay alive...

Rgds,

Eeben

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

Thanks for the compliment, Bret.

I am now completing the second to last chapter but as I have spent a lot of time away from home this year, my timeline has collapsed.

Yes, it will be available in the US when it finally surfaces.

Rgds,

Eeben

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

A new low it certainly is, SFMedic – not to mention my surprise at finding I am supposedly dead.

As for writing, I am battling a bit as I also have other “duties” to take care of. But, as I am on my last chapter – again struggling – I see the end in sight.

Rgds,

Eeben

Sonny Cox said...

Hi Eeben - Heroes do not die - They simply fade away!!
I was watching a movie on Munich last week and was thinking of YOU.
Be strong and keep up the enemies blood pressure....
Regards
Billy

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

Long time, no hear or see, Billy. I trust all well?

I too enjoyed Munich – both the city and the film...but days gone by are now gone forever. But to be young again and travel old roads...

Rgds,

Eeben

Silat Scott said...

I love your diplomacy!
When you said 'well fed guards', I read between the lines and came up with "Their fat-assed guards sporting the physique of a salted-garden slug."
Have a safe and serene day and watch your six out there!
Scott

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

Well, you know how these things go Scott. Had I said that they are beyond well-fed, I may find myself at the end of some human-rights violation and be sued for calling obese security guards exactly what you call them.

Your description is however far more correct than mine.

Rgds,

Eeben

Tango said...

Hi Eeben,
A greeting from Billy to you brings back fondest memories " We Salute and miss a great guy our buddy James !
May he RIP
All is well .
Amazing stories that go around on the net !
As billy say's "Be strong and keep up the enemies blood pressure....


Searching on the internet to see if the story about you is true i came across this post

Dead Men Risen:
The snipers' story
Operating from a remote patrol base in Helmand, two British snipers were responsible for killing 75 Taliban fighters in just 40 days. In one remarkable feat of marksmanship, two insurgents were dispatched with a single bullet.

Just wondered if you were not one of the "Dead Men Risen"

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/8376808/Dead-Men-Risen-The-snipers-story.html

Eeben Barlow's Milsec Blog said...

Good to hear from you again, Billy.

I too miss my brother and it is a comfort to know that others miss him as well. It took me quite a long time to come to terms with his death and I often find myself thinking of him or asking myself “What would he do in this situation?”

Thanks for the link. A truly amazing story.

Take care and keep well.

Rgds,

Eeben