PRESS CONFERENCE ON SMALL ARMS

The United States was refusing to acknowledge the role of small arms in fuelling violence around the world, Michael Beard, President of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, USA, told correspondents at Headquarters this afternoon.

Like other large weapons-producing countries, the United States must take responsibility for the production and distribution of small arms that were endangering people around the globe, he added, speaking at a press conference for International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA), sponsored by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).

Four representatives of non-governmental organizations affiliated to IANSA, a network of approximately 320 organizations in 70 countries, took questions from journalists.  The representatives had been observing and participating in the Preparatory Committee for the United Nations Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects, which ends today.  The Conference is scheduled for July at Headquarters.

Expressing dismay at the disruptive role that the United States delegation had played in the Preparatory Committee, Mr. Beard noted that American companies were profiting from the sales of weapons, while other countries paid the price for their unchecked distribution.  Until the United States recognized the role of small arms in domestic and international violence, needless death and injury from firearms would continue.

Recalling the boast of the National Rifle Association (NRA) that it would have an office in the White House should George W. Bush win the presidency, he said the organization now appeared to have offices in the State and Defence Departments, as well.  It had corrupted the United States position on international arms control, as it had done at the domestic level.

Julieta Castellanos of Foro Ciudadano, Universidad Autónomo de Honduras, said there had been no effective policy in Central America to collect the many weapons left over from conflicts there.  Illegal markets had continued functioning after conflicts.  In Honduras, an average of 47 weapons were still sold every day.  Consequently, security and quality of life had deteriorated severely.

She said the homicide rate in Honduras was 50 victims per 100,000 inhabitants, far higher than the World Health Organization's high-level mark of  10 per 100,000.  Between 1996 and 1999, more than 9,000 people had been killed by firearms, and an average of 30 persons were admitted to hospitals every day with firearm-related injuries.  The entire Central American region needed an effective small arms policy, as much to control the legal arms trade as to control illegal trafficking, she noted.

James Arputharaj, Director of the Sri Lanka-based South Asia Partnership International, noted that the region was home to the largest proportion of the world's poor.  Gun violence affected the people's livelihood systems, while women and children formed the majority of internally displaced persons.  It was a human- security issue affecting the lives of some 1.5 billion people.

There were 40 million illegal small arms circulating in South Asia, where about 20,000 people died of small arms-related causes annually, he said.  The situation affected conflict, as well as post-conflict areas.  Afghanistan alone

harboured close to 10 billion small arms, while small arms that had been used in the liberation wars of Viet Nam and Bangladesh were still in circulation.

Sarah Meeks of International Alert UK, said the chances of the Preparatory Committee producing a negotiating mandate for a legally binding instrument were increasingly remote.  The IANSA would like, at least, a firm commitment by States to pursue legally binding instruments through other measures within the United Nations system with an attached time frame.

However, she said there was still hope for concrete progress.  Countries were less hostile to the idea of having to judge their arms exports against the criteria of international obligations under international humanitarian law or respect for human rights.  The European Union's submission of a discussion on export criteria had been more positive than expected, she noted.

Asked to explain his remarks about NRA influence and disarray in the United States delegation, Mr. Beard said there was a clear fight between the Departments of State and Defence over control of the delegation and small arms policy.  There was also a clear lack of direction and much dissension within the delegation.

It was also clear that the delegation did not want any domestic responsibility for anything appearing in the Preparatory Committee, he said.  The delegation wanted the discussion restricted to the illicit arms trade.  The United States must have a better understanding that its domestic policies affected people around the world, he stressed.

What had the United States disarray meant for the Preparatory Committee meeting? another correspondent asked.

Mr. Beard replied that during the past two weeks progress in the Preparatory Committee had taken place at a glacial pace.  The United States, which had an inordinate amount of power, had tried to remain in the background, but had emerged as a massive roadblock to any progress, including on the participation of non-governmental organizations.

Asked which other countries had played an obstructionist role besides the United States, Mr. Arputharaj said that some of South Africa's statements had been negative.  Some other countries did not want to take up any legally binding obligations at this stage.

Mr. Beard said that two of the largest arms manufacturing countries were the Russian Federation and China, which were clearly lining up with the United States in many of the discussions.  When they red-lined the point beyond which they would not cross, that became a very powerful disincentive for action by other States.

On the other hand, Ms. Castellanos pointed out, it had been quite easy to identify delegations like Mexico, Brazil, the European Union, Canada and others that were pushing more progressive agendas.  Non-governmental organizations in Central America wished to exert pressure on their governments to participate more effectively in the July Conference.  Any helpful initiative in the small arms debate was important, even without the expectation of results in the short term, she added.

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