As many of you security and management professionals know quite well, the civil aspects of your operating environment have a potential of tremendous effect on what you’re trying accomplish businesswise. To that end, many organizations have on their staff information (intelligence or security) staff who are charged maintaining a constant vigil on civil aspects of the operating environment that can interrupt your business or purpose for being where you are. While I am sharing this with an eye toward multinationals operating in an overseas environment, don’t think that the same rules don’t apply to your operations in your home countries, because they do. But, this article is intended primarily for those of you who have concerns outside of your home countries and should be read in that light. Specifically, when discussing what you’re having your ‘information or intelligence’ staff working on, we are looking here at Civil Considerations within your operating area. The elements I’ll address below, are a modified from several military manuals and have a generic application across the multinational business spectrum particularly in high risk areas. So whether your organization is an NGO, a Manufacturing Organization, Development Firm, or a Government sponsored enterprise working outside your home country, here are some doctrinal Civil Consideration fundamentals that I suggest you have your information staff working on continually or which you may be very well served in purchasing as a service for the duration of your projects abroad. AND – like any other aspect of the analysis of information and intelligence you should always expect that your staff is answering the question – ‘What impact / effect will these factors have on our operation?’ Let’s look at what I mean. Doctrinally, civil considerations comprise six characteristics, expressed in the memory aid ASCOPE:
1. Areas Key civilian areas are localities or aspects of the terrain within an operating area that often are not security or protection significant. This characteristic approaches terrain analysis (OAKOC/KOCOA) from a civilian perspective. Most former military folks will readily recognize this. Security Leaders analyze key civilian areas in terms of how they affect the operations of their individual organizations as well as how their operations affect these areas. Examples of key civilian areas are— Areas defined by political boundaries, such as districts within a city or municipalities within a region. Locations of government centers. Social, political, religious, or criminal enclaves. Agricultural and mining regions. Trade routes. Possible sites for the temporary settlement of displaced civilians or other civil functions. Ask yourself this question – ‘Does my current analytical capability provide me with a constant assessment of the impact of the AREA on my operation?’ 2. Structures Existing structures can play many significant roles. Some provide answers to logistics and supply chain questions, others to life support, and others to threat intent or potential targeting. Some of these are - Bridges. Communication towers. Power plants. Dams. Others are cultural sites that international law or other agreements generally protect, such as–– Churches. Mosques. Temples. National libraries. Hospitals. Clinics. Still others are facilities with practical applications that may be useful for Protection and Support purposes, such as–– Jails. Warehouses. Television broadcast facilities. Radio stations. Print plants. Some aspects of the civilian infrastructure, such as the location of toxic industrial materials, may influence operations. Analyzing a structure involves determining how its location, functions, and capabilities can support the operation. Leaders also consider the consequences of using it. Using a structure for business, security, or commercial purposes often competes with civilian requirements for it. Leaders must carefully weigh the expected benefits against costs to the community that will have to be addressed in the future. The possibility of repaying locals for the use of shared facilities or building more of the same facilities, time and cost permitting, should be considered. The following are additional aspects of structure to be considered during civil consideration analysis: Locations of police stations (with defined precincts) and security service headquarters. Locations of essential services, infrastructure, and key logistic and sustainability facilities, such as–– Potable water wells, water distribution, and pumping stations. Sewage treatment plants and sewer systems. Refineries and fuel oil or propane storage facilities. Line of Communication (LOCs.) Phone company headquarters with key microwave towers and underground nodal (nexus) points noted; cell phone-related towers. Airports with runway approaches, train and bus stations, and track networks, highways and arterial roads with major intersections. Tribes and clans. Locations of cultural shrines. Universities, newspapers, television stations, cultural associations, financial and trade districts, seminaries. Ask yourself this question – ‘Does my current information / security / intelligence staff have the updated or archived data to be able to answer any relative questions about these considerations on a phone call?’ If not, the answer to what they need to be working on sort of jumps out at you. 3. Capabilities Business Leaders / Management and staffs analyze capabilities from different levels. They view capabilities in terms of those required to save, sustain, or enhance life, in that priority. Capabilities can refer to the ability of local authorities—those of the HN, aggressors, or some other body—to provide a populace with key functions or services, such as–– Public administration. Public safety. Emergency services. Food. Technology. Capabilities include those areas in which the populace may need help after combat operations, such as public works and utilities, public health, economics, and commerce. Capabilities also refer to resources and services that can be contracted to support your operation such as interpreters, laundry services, construction materials, and equipment. The HN or other nations might provide these resources and services. Especially important for emergency management planning, these factors should be a part of your intelligence staff’s basic portfolio of data. If it isn’t their job, or isn’t currently their job, ask yourself – ‘Whose job is it?’ 4. Organizations Organizations are nonmilitary groups or institutions in the operating area. They influence and interact with the populace, the force, and each other. They generally have a hierarchical structure, defined goals, established operations, fixed facilities or meeting places, and a means of financial or logistic support. Some organizations may be indigenous to the area. These organizations may include–– Church groups. Fraternal organizations. Patriotic or service organizations. Labor unions. Criminal organizations. Community watch groups. Other organizations may come from outside the AO. Examples of these include–– Multinational corporations. Intergovernmental organizations (IGOs), such as United Nations agencies, and international organizations, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross. Other government agencies. Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), which are private, self-governing, not-for-profit organizations. Operations also often require business leaders, managers and security staff to coordinate with IGOs, NGOs, and other civilian organizations. Leaders (Business and Security) must remain familiar with organizations operating in their operational areas. Relevant information includes information about their activities, capabilities, and limitations. Situational awareness includes having knowledge of how the activities of different organizations may affect your operations and how your operations may affect these organizations’ activities. From this, Leaders can determine how organizations and supporting forces and activities can work together toward common goals when necessary. Ask yourself this question – ‘Has every one of these organizations within my operating area been evaluated for use by or potential support from?’ 5. People People is a general term used to describe local population personnel encountered by your organization. The term includes all civilians within an operational area as well as those outside the operational area whose actions, opinions, or political influence can affect your purpose for being there. Individually or collectively, people can affect an operation positively, negatively, or neutrally. There can be many different kinds of people living and operating in and around an operational area. As with organizations, people may be indigenous or introduced from outside the operating area. An analysis of people should identify them by their various capabilities, needs, and intentions. It is useful to separate people into distinct categories. When analyzing people, Leaders consider historical, cultural, ethnic, political, economic, and humanitarian factors. They also identify the key communicators and the formal and informal processes used to influence people. The languages used in the region will have a huge impact on operations. The languages used in the area must be identified so language training, communication aids such as phrase cards, and requisitioning of translators can begin. Translators will be crucial for collecting intelligence, interacting with local citizens and community leaders, and developing products for information operations. Another aspect of language involves transliteration of names not written using the English alphabet. This will have an impact on all intelligence operations, to include collection, analysis, dissemination, and targeting. In countries that do not use the English alphabet, an area-wide standard should be set for spelling names. Without a spelling standard, it can be difficult to conduct effective analysis. To overcome these problems, you may develop one spelling standard for a the area and because of the interagency nature of working overseas, standard must generally agree with what other organizations you wish to exchange information with are doing. Anyone who has worked overseas readily recognizes the difficulty of database exchange and coordination when no two organizations are using the same spelling or linguistic rules. Another major consideration when analyzing civil considerations is religion. Religion has shaped almost every conflict of the past, and there are indicators that its influence will only grow. Consider the following when incorporating religion in planning: Know when religious traditions will be affected by the mission and try to determine how it will affect the impact of the mission. Know when religious figures have influenced social transformations in a negative or positive way. Consider all parties, no matter how violent or exclusive. Remember that religion has the ability to shape the operational environment/battlespace environment. Religion can add a higher intensity, severity, brutality, and lethality to conflicts than almost any other factor. Carefully consider that religion can motivate the populace quickly and inexpensively. By working closely with other staff elements, to include your Civil Affairs, Public & Government Affairs, Socio-Economic Teams, or whatever your organization calls them, intelligence analysts will be able to develop and disseminate to the Leadership an understanding of the day-to-day lives of the people in the operating area. This includes everything from the important ideologies and religions to the economy, to public perceptions of the insurgency, to the history of the area and how it influences the insurgency. Using ASCOPE, the analyst takes into consideration cultural terms and conditions. Cultural terms and conditions describe both Western and foreign ways of thought and behavior. Understanding culture gives insight into motives and intent of nearly every person or group in the operational environment––friend, enemy, or other. This insight in turn allows Leaders and staffs to allocate resources, outmaneuver opponents, alleviate friction, and reduce the fog of war. The study of culture for operational support is not an academic exercise and therefore requires specific guidelines and definition. The analyst must refrain from judging cultural groups and remember to examine the group free of cultural biases. Consider these categories and cultural factors–– Social structure. Behavioral patterns. Perceptions. Religious beliefs. Tribal relationships. Behavioral taboos. Centers of authority. Lifestyles. Social history. Culture is studied in order to give insights into the way people think, the reasons for their beliefs and perceptions, and what kind of behavior they can be expected to display in given situations. Because cultures are constantly shifting, the study of culture is an enduring task that requires historical perspective as well as collection and analysis of current information. 6. Events Events are routine, cyclical, planned, or spontaneous activities that significantly affect organizations, people, and operations. Examples include–– National and religious holidays. Agricultural crop or livestock and market cycles. Elections. Civil disturbances. Celebrations. Other events are disasters from natural, manmade, or technological sources. These create civil hardship and require emergency responses. Once significant events are determined, it is important to template the events and analyze them for their political, economic, psychological, environmental, and legal implications. Technological innovation, external social influences, and natural and manmade disasters (such as hurricanes, environmental damage, and war) affect the attitudes and activities of governments and civilian populations. These changes cause stress in the civilian population and its leaders. The civilian population may or may not successfully incorporate these changes within its existing cultural value system. Addressing the problems posed by change requires considerable time and resources. The impatience of key leaders and groups, legal restrictions, and limits on resources can make resolution difficult. Another consideration of defining the operational environment is to learn what other government, commercial, and non-government organizations are doing within your operating area. These may include – Military and Police Forces Private Security Organizations Standard NGOs Host Nation Government Agencies (Local to National) International Diplomatic Missions Other commercial endeavors (companies and businesses) Knowledge of these organizations allows intelligence personnel to establish working relationships and procedures for sharing information. These relationships and procedures will be critical to ensuring intelligence gets to the appropriate consumer and to developing a common operational picture. Ask yourself this question. ‘Can my internal intelligence apparatus or my contracted company consistently provide me with - An evaluation of the effects of terrain on my or an adversary’s operations? An evaluation of weather effects on my or an adversary’s operations? An evaluation of the effects of civil considerations on my or an adversary’s operations? Basically, you are asking for the total environment’s effects on your operations and courses of action and the adversary that would oppose or interrupt those operations. Further – does your intelligence (information staff or service) provide you with disseminated graphic products that are archived, widely available, and used by all staff elements to maintain a common operational picture? If not – perhaps you should more closely consider directing what you want – OR – find a new staff / provider. |
What are the items for analysis when evaluating civil considerations and their impact on military operations?
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