UN DEPARTMENTS, AGENCIES BRIEF SMALL ARMS CONFERENCE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE; GENERAL DISCUSSION BEGINS ON DRAFT ACTION PROGRAMME

Preparatory Committee for the

United Nations Conference on

 The Illicit Trade in Small Arms

 And Light Weapons in All its Aspects

29^th Meeting (PM)

UN DEPARTMENTS, AGENCIES BRIEF SMALL ARMS CONFERENCE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE;

GENERAL DISCUSSION BEGINS ON DRAFT ACTION PROGRAMME

The Preparatory Committee for the United Nations Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects continued the first day of its third and final session this afternoon by hearing briefings from various departments and agencies of the United Nations system on their approaches to the issue.  In addition, a general began on the revised version of the draft programme of action.

Jayantha Dhanapala, Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs, said  socio-economic challenges often served as the catalyst for conflicts and were often coupled with the wide availability of arms.  Sustainable peace could not exist without addressing both disarmament and the root causes of conflict.  It was, therefore, imperative that civil society, governments, the military and United Nations agencies cooperate on the issue.  For its part, the Department of Disarmament Affairs was ready to contribute new and innovative ways to meet the challenges posed by small arms and light weapons.

Kenzo Oshima, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, speaking on behalf of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee, said that the findings from a survey by the Committee last year on the humanitarian impact of small arms and light weapons showed that the irresponsible use of lethal small weapons did result in massive violations of humanitarian law and human rights.  Such weapons damaged the welfare of individuals and communities; fueled conflict; and impeded humanitarian relief work, rehabilitation and reconstruction, as well as sustainable development.

Peter Crowley, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), said the agency's aim was to keep weapons out of the hands of children and also keep children out of conflicts.  He called on Member States to ensure that the Conference on small arms address the issue of children in conflict.

Elisabeth Stamatopoulou, Deputy to the Director of the New York Office, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that while the upcoming Conference would focus on the illicit trade in small arms, the fact that most illegal weapons in circulation were at some point transferred by governments, or with their approval, must be recognized.  Governments that failed to effectively regulate the arms trade and allowed weapons to end up with human rights abusers were also failing to ensure respect for international humanitarian law.

Statements were also made by the representatives of the World Health Organization (WHO), the Secretary of the Preparatory Committee on behalf of the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Liaison Office in New York, and the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations.

Carlos Dos Santos (Mozambique), Committee Chairman introduced the version of the draft programme of action that had resulted from the second session of the Committee and opened a general discussion on it.

The representatives of Sweden (on behalf of the European Union), Canada, United Arab Emirates (on behalf of the League of Arab States) and India also made statements.

The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. Tuesday to continue its general discussion of the programme of action.

Background

The Preparatory Committee for the United Nations Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in all its aspects met this afternoon to continue consideration of its preparations for the July Conference.  (For background information, see Press Release DC/2756 of 16 March.)

JAYANTHA DHANAPALA, Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs, said that for the past year the main priority of the Department, on the small arms issue, had been the technical and substantive servicing of the preparatory process for the upcoming Conference.  It had also assisted in establishing and servicing various groups of governmental experts to assist the Secretary-General on specific aspects of the issue.  The mechanism for Coordinating Action on Small Arms (CASA) was established by the Department as the focal point on small arms.  The Department placed great emphasis on advocacy and information-sharing, creating exhibits and cooperating with non-governmental organizations, other United Nations agencies and Member States, and had organized various meetings and seminars.

The Department, he said, had also established specific practical tools to address the small arms issue.  Practical disarmament measures had helped strengthen and improve post-conflict peace-building initiatives.  The United Nations Trust Fund for the Consolidation of Peace through Practical Disarmament Measures was administered by the Department.  In other areas as well, the Department had assisted governments with the design, development, and implementation of post-conflict peace building programmes.  It placed great emphasis on disarmament education and raising awareness, especially regarding such issues as “gender and disarmament”.

Socio-economic challenges, he said, oftentimes served as the source or the catalyst for conflicts, and were often coupled with the wide availability of arms, he said.  Sustainable peace could not exist without addressing both disarmament and the root causes of conflict.  It was, therefore, imperative that civil society, governments, the military and United Nations agencies cooperate on the issue.  For its part, the Department of Disarmament Affairs was ready to contribute new and innovative ways to meet the challenges posed by small arms and light weapons.

PETER CROWLEY, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), said the Fund's efforts to address the issue of small arms and light weapons had incorporated strategies that included research and advocacy.  His organization had worked with, and would continue to work closely with, its sister agencies and civil society.  Three hundred thousand children were used to fight wars and the availability of small arms encouraged that involvement.  The Fund's aim was to keep weapons out of the hands of children and also keep children out of conflicts where they were used as combatants, porters, spies and cooks.  In Sierra Leone, UNICEF was working to promote the demobilization of child soldiers, as well as providing them with care and support.  The primary beneficiaries so far were 5,400 children associated with the fighting forces in that country.

He said that for UNICEF protecting children from small arms meant reducing the presence of such weapons.  Education was at the heart of the Fund's efforts to counter violence and promote a culture of peace.  That education included formal and non-formal methods.  Peace education aimed to promote tolerance.  Angola, Sri Lanka and Colombia were among some of the countries where UNICEF promoted such programmes.  Efforts to foster a culture of peace took place in the family and the community, as well as in the larger society.

He said UNICEF was a United Nations focal point for landmine awareness education.  In Albania and Kosovo, a variety of activities had brought children together under the banner "don't let guns kill our dreams".  The Fund was also promoting media training aimed at discouraging the glorification of weapons.  Such programmes had been introduced in Colombia and Sri Lanka.  He called for leadership and accountability at all levels of society to ensure that every child could grow and develop into adulthood with freedom and dignity.  He further called on Member States to ensure that the Conference address the issue of children in conflict.

ETIENNE KRUG, of the World Health Organization (WHO), said that small arms were an important contributor to health problems.  Deaths and injuries occurred because of the use of such arms during acts of interpersonal violence, political conflicts and suicides or attempted suicides.  In 1996, the World Health Assembly adopted a resolution declaring violence a global public health problem.  In combating the problem, the WHO strongly believed that high-quality data was a prerequisite for policy development.  That area would be the main focus of its contribution to the work at hand.  The WHO would compile and analyse available data on small arms injuries and deaths internationally and report that information to the upcoming Conference.

The WHO, he said, would focus on health-system response and on strengthening pre-hospital and hospital care for victims of small arms injuries.  Other risk factors for violence needed to be considered and the WHO was developing a number of instruments to guide violence prevention in countries.  Factors contributing to the spread and perpetration of violence, such as the easy availability of small arms, would be discussed in that report.

AGNÉS MARCAILLOU, Secretary of the Preparatory Committee, spoke on behalf of Patricia Lewis of the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR).  She said that in West Africa the organization was conducting a project to promote the participation of civil society in the fight against the proliferation of small arms and light weapons.  The Institute operated in partnership with local non-governmental organizations and community-based organizations to:  raise awareness in civil society; build local capacities; facilitate transparency and participation in decision-making; enhance community-based and cross-border peace-building; and contribute to the creation of conditions to reduce weapons proliferation. 

She said that as part of its West African focus, UNIDIR was making a specific study of the flow of small arms through refugee camps in Guinea, near the borders of Sierra Leone and Liberia.  The project was attempting to identify the common causes of the militarization of refugee camps and thus assist refugee agencies in the planning and execution of their work.  In southern Africa, UNIDIR was working with the Small Arms Survey and the Institute for Security Studies to carry out two studies on South Africa's Weapons Destruction and Stockpile Management Programme.   

In 2001, the Institute's regional fellowship programme was focusing on the effects of internal conflicts on regional security in South Asia.  The Institute was also carrying out a series of studies on small arms circulation and proliferation -- licit and illicit -- in a number of regions.  Those studies would enable UNIDIR to map out the flow of small arms and light weapons throughout the world.  The most recent research in the programme focused on small arms in Central Asia.

LARRY DE BOICE, Deputy Director of the Emergency Response Division, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), said that the unrestrained proliferation of small arms and light weapons posed severe risks to overall development processes and, in particular, activities supported by the UNDP.  The UNDP had worked extensively at the security and development interface and was well-placed to be the operational focal point for activities aimed at addressing the demand side of the small arms equation, and in support of action to reduce supply.  Extensive field presence allowed it to play a major role on the ground.  In addition, its efforts continued well after open conflict ended, and the Programme was involved in all areas of long-term peace-building.

The UNDP’s ongoing work programme on the issue aimed to raise awareness of the socio-economic costs of illict arms; to support integrated approaches to reducing the causes and impacts of small arms within existing programming; to support specific interventions on development aspects of the problem; and to provide technical assistance on arms collection and disposal.

In that work programme, he said, early analysis to forestall future problems and integrated approaches would be emphasized.  In the total small-arms picture, the UNDP could help to establish and strengthen cooperative mechanisms, voluntary restraint measures and moratoria.  Most importantly, the UNDP could address the comprehensive nature of the small arms agenda with partner governments and civil society by facilitating the identification and analysis of problems and formulating, together, broad-based, long-term and workable solutions.  In work on the Conference, the UNDP would provide awareness programmes and would propose to bring together a number of senior field specialists to provide a perspective on the day-to-day realities of managing programmes that related to small-arms policy. 

ELISABETH STAMATOPOULOU, Deputy to the Director of the New York Office, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that while the United Nations Conference would focus on the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons, the fact that most of the illegal weapons in circulation were at some point transferred by governments or with government approval must be recognized.  Governments that failed to effectively regulate the trade in small arms and allowed those weapons to end up in the hands of human rights abusers were also failing to ensure respect for international humanitarian law.  The Office therefore urged States to recognize the human rights impact of the trade and accept their responsibilities to regulate it.

She said the international response to the trade in small arms should address not only the so-called supply side of the trade, but also the root causes that shaped the demand for those weapons.  The Office of the High Commissioner urged that any initiatives to combat the illicit trade in small arms should be undertaken with due consideration for, and in full compliance with, standards of international human rights law.  Those initiatives should include the adoption and implementation of national and regional codes of conduct that prohibited the transfer of small arms and light weapons to parties known to violate human rights or international humanitarian law, or who failed to bring to justice those responsible for such violations.

Other initiatives, she continued, should include:  the effective implementation and enforcement of arms embargoes imposed on human rights abusers; measures to improve transparency in the production, stockpiling and transfer of weapons; the inclusion of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration measures for ex-combatants; and the ratification and implementation by States of international humanitarian law and human rights instruments.  States should take full advantage of the Conference by sending a strong message that the use of small arms to commit human rights abuses -- and the failure to prevent such abuses -- would not be tolerated.    

KENZO OSHIMA, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, speaking on behalf of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee, said that in order to research and document the human cost of the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, the Inter-Agency Standing Committee last year commissioned a survey on the humanitarian impact of such weapons.  The findings showed that the irresponsible use of lethal small weapons did result in massive violations of humanitarian law and human rights; damaged the welfare of individuals and communities; fueled conflict; and seriously impeded humanitarian relief work, rehabilitation and reconstruction, as well as sustainable development.

He said that while the causes of each conflict varied according to the specific case, they shared common characteristics.  The violence and proliferation of small arms in conflict areas acted as multipliers of violence.  Equally troubling was the increased availability of small arms in refugee camps and in facilities and camps that accommodated internally displaced persons.  In those places, where vulnerable people were forced to live in large numbers, the presence of small arms created a serious additional threat to the well-being of civilians.  The impact of small arms and light weapons often continued long after armed conflicts had ceased and posed obstacles to post-conflict reconstruction.  In other words, wartime deaths and casualties comprised only a fraction of the damage done by small arms.

Not to be forgotten, he continued, were the many indirect effects of small arms.  The fear of the gun could lead to massive social disruption, such as mass displacement caused by terror of armed groups and loss of assets through armed robbery.  In particular, experience in the field showed that often the presence of small arms prevented civilian access to medical services; disrupted regular access to education facilities; and interrupted the delivery of healthcare, relief assistance and vaccination programmes by aid agencies.  In light of the facts, while the challenges that lay ahead of the international community were immense, the consequences of inaction were unacceptable.

SALVATORE LOMBARDO, Senior Liaison Officer of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), presented some of the consequences, on refugees, of the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, as well as describing UNHCR activities to protect refugees.  Among the consequences that he mentioned were forced displacement and difficulties caused by the presence of armed elements in refugee camps.  The proliferation of small arms in camps and cross-border attacks also impeded the process of voluntary repatriation, undermined the reintegration of refugees, and led to regionalization of conflicts.

In describing relevant UNHCR activities, he noted the advice, training and technical assistance provided to strengthen States’ capacity to maintain the rule of law in refugee-populated areas.  In addition, the UNHCR cooperated with the Department of Peacekeeping Operations in a number of relevant areas and was working with governments and through its own means to upgrade the security situation of both refugees and its own staff and partners.

Measures to control, mark and record small arms and light weapons were, he said, steps in the right direction.  He also welcomed suggestions with regard to the regulation of the activities of arms brokers.  The challenges of conflict went beyond the proliferation of weapons to fundamental problems, such as poverty and lack of development.  Those fundamental problems were the reason people resorted to the use of weapons.  Both kinds of problems needed to be tackled equally.  Ultimately, success would be measured by tangible changes in the daily lives of communities affected by the proliferation of small arms.

CHRIS COLEMAN, Department of Peacekeeping Operations, said that the United Nations Interim Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), in collaboration with the stabilization force -– KFOR -- was trying to enforce control over the circulation of small arms in the province.  Small weapons were seized and destroyed.  Yet, despite the efforts, small arms smuggling was still rife in the region and difficult to control.  While the large numbers of such arms in circulation had been somewhat curbed, further prevention had been unsuccessful, due to weak penalties in Kosovo's criminal code.  There were, however, new codes being implemented that aimed to correct that deficiency. 

Turning to Lebanon, he said that until recently -- from 1978 to 2000 -- the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) had helped to prevent infiltration of weapons into its area of operations by setting up checkpoints. Anyone refusing to cooperate had been denied entry and any weapons found were confiscated.  That situation changed with Israeli withdrawal.  The UNIFIL now monitored violations of the “blue line” and responsibility for controlling the flow of arms was handed over to Lebanese authorities.  There was a considerable influx of weapons, due to, among other things, porous borders and a well-established arms dealer network.

Addressing East Timor, he said that as of January, a detailed agreement was signed on the control of Falantil weapons.  In the wake of that agreement, only soldiers of East Timor's Defence Force performing operational tasks, such as defence duty, were allowed to carry weapons.  In Sierra Leone the main activities of United Nations Mission in that country followed a mandate to assist the Government in the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programme.  Weapons found or confiscated were handed over to authorities of Sierra Leone.  The main objective of the Mission was to assist in the promotion of the political process leading to renewal of and vigour in the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration process.

RAKESH SOOD (India) thanked the representatives of the agencies, departments and organizations who had contributed briefings to the day’s meetings.  He hoped that, at some point during the Committee session, there would be a full discussion of how the Vienna process affected the work on the Conference.

CARLOS DOS SANTOS (Mozambique), Committee Chairman, then introduced the version of the draft programme of action that had resulted from the second session of Preparatory Committee.  The version at hand was shorter and more concise, he said.  In that vein, its preamble briefly stated the problem, recalled the United Nations Charter principles, stressed obligations, and referred to the objectives of the Conference.

Section II, he said, also had a more simplified structure, and also kept essential elements.  It avoided the repetitions of the first version.  The language had been modified to reflect a political document, rather than a legal document.  Section III further amplified ideas of international cooperation and assistance with implementation.  It attempted to highlight the needs of the most-affected regions and emphasize the responsibility of all States in dealing with the problem.  Section IV had been made consistent with the usual follow-up approach for such Conferences, allowing flexibility for the General Assembly and other actors to make their proper decisions in accordance with developments. 

He then opened a general exchange of views on the draft programme of action.

SUNE DANIELSSON (Sweden) spoke on behalf of the European Union and the associated States of Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta, Iceland and Norway. 

He reminded delegations of the Economic Commission of West African States (ECOWAS) Moratorium, which was adopted in October 1998 and was a voluntary commitment on the part of the member States of that Commission to stop the importation, exportation and manufacture of small arms for three years.  While that Moratorium expired on 31 October, the geopolitical reality in West Africa  was getting worse, despite recent gains in certain countries.  The proliferation of small arms was obviously a destabilizing factor in the region, which had witnessed the tragedy of children being used in combat operations. 

He said the Union reiterated its strong support for the renewal of the Moratorium as a way of consolidating the demilitarization process in West Africa.  It also emphasized that ownership and political commitment on the part of the ECOWAS member States in the implementation of the Moratorium was essential.  The Union was also fully aware of the situation in other regions affected by conflict -- such as Latin America -- where crime and drug trafficking combined with the proliferation of small arms had caused great suffering to large parts of the civilian population, including children.

"We feel strongly that when we formulate the programme of action, we should aim at agreeing on concrete solutions, on political commitments and standards and, thus, setting guidelines for our future work", he said.  In the programme of action, it was important to highlight the concerns about the negative impact of small arms proliferation on development, particularly in undermining national and international efforts to pursue and support sustainable development programmes.  Strict export controls were of the utmost importance in efforts to combat the illicit trade in small arms.  In the context of law enforcement cooperation, the Union also wished to draw attention to the problems posed by the diversions of such arms.  The programme should also reflect a political commitment to elaborate a legally binding instrument on arms brokering. 

It would also be useful to include commitments to consider how to deal with financing and transportation in the context of the illegal trade, he continued.  On financing, the links between the illicit arms trade and other kinds of similar trade activities should be covered.  The Union also supported the proposal to elaborate a legally binding instrument on traceability.  Information exchange and transparency on legal arms flows would be of great help in combatting the illicit flow of light weapons.  States should, therefore, be encouraged to make information available on exports and imports not only in a regional context, but at a global level.  In addition, the Union strongly supported the role of non-governmental organizations and civil society in the implementation of the programme of action.

ROBERT MCDOUGALL (Canada) welcomed the second draft of the programme of action as a good basis for deliberations in the coming session.  His country continued to promote a comprehensive approach to the small arms and light weapons problem, with a focus on the link between licit and illicit flows of such weapons.  The majority of them were, after all, legally produced, transferred and sold.  Only later did they enter into illicit circulation.

Small arms, he said, were diverted into that illicit trade by a variety of means, such as domestic leakage, theft, inadequate stockpile security, document falsification and other means.  Those diversions must be tackled by legal means, often the same ones used to regulate the licit trade.  The right that States had to possess small arms for defence implied a responsibility to prevent those arms from being used for harmful purposes.

The initiatives emphasized by Canada, he said, included strengthening national controls related to the legal manufacture, possession, stockpile, transfer and transportation of small arms.  International cooperation and

information sharing should also be emphasized, especially in the areas of document authentification and tracking.  Among other measures, the means to improve enforcement of international embargoes should be vigorously pursued.  Finally, he supported the statement by Sweden on behalf of the European Union, particularly its support of the participation of non-governmental organizations at the Conference.

ABDULLAH KHAMEES AL-SHAMSI (United Arab Emirates), speaking on behalf of the League of Arab States, said that the countries he represented had found, in general, their views included in the agenda and the draft programme of action.  However, there were still certain points that needed to be made.

The tackling of the small arms problem, he said, must be pursued within the context of General Assembly resolution 54/54 V, with the focus on the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons.  That did not mean that the issues of nuclear disarmament and other disarmament should be cast completely aside.  A concern with international and regional peace and security should be kept. 

In addition, he said, small arms and light weapons should not be described as the root causes of conflicts in regions of the world.  The preamble should refer to those root causes.  The right of peoples to self-determination should appear in the document as well.  A number of other proposals concerning the draft programme of action would follow from the League, during the course of the session.

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