FIRST BIENNIAL MEETING OF STATES TO ASSESS HALT TO ILLICIT SMALL ARMS TRADE CONCLUDES, HAILS PROGRESS WORLDWIDE IN JUST TWO YEARS

Meeting of States to Consider Action

Programme on Illicit Small Arms Trade

9^th & 10^th Meetings (AM & PM)

FIRST BIENNIAL MEETING OF STATES TO ASSESS HALT TO ILLICIT SMALL ARMS TRADE CONCLUDES, HAILS PROGRESS WORLDWIDE IN JUST TWO YEARS

Thematic Discussions End on Import/Export Controls, Illicit Brokering

The Biennial Meeting on implementing the 2001 United Nations Programme of Action to combat the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons concluded its week-long session at Headquarters this afternoon with the adoption of its report, containing, in an annex, the Chairperson’s summary of the meeting.

Progress had been made worldwide within barely two years of adopting the Programme of Action in public disclosures about the origins, destinations, modus operandi and profiling of groups engaged in illicit small arms trade, Chairperson Kuniko Inoguchi (Japan) stated in her written summary, which was orally amended and attached to the report.

She said that a key element in moving forward was new or amended national legislation, with over 90 countries now reporting that they had domestic laws to govern the illicit manufacture, possession and trade in weapons.  Regional and global cooperation was also growing, especially with respect to brokering, but States should agree on guidelines for authorizing exports, imports and the transit of small arms and light weapons, she urged.

She also observed that the destruction of almost half of an estimated total of over 4 million weapons collected and disposed of during the last decade had taken place over the past two years.  The diversion of legitimate stocks was estimated as one of the main avenues for acquiring illicit weapons, and participants had agreed that assistance was needed to improve the security of armouries.

Also, she added, a United Nations Group of Governmental Experts had been established and had now completed its work on the feasibility of an international instrument on marking and tracing arms.

In adopting the meeting’s report, it was decided that the list of regional and subregional initiatives, as originally contained in her paragraph 17, would not be annexed to the report, but treated as a conference room paper.

In concluding remarks, Ms. Inoguchi expressed her gratitude to all participants as well as members of the bureau and Secretariat.  She stressed that all should be proud of the attention they had paid to one of the most pressing problems of the time.

Earlier today, Member States wrapped up thematic discussions, begun yesterday, on vital aspects for controlling such weapons, such as marking and tracing, linkages between small arms and light weapons and terrorism, organized crime and precious minerals, and import/export control and illicit brokering of those weapons. 

The Bureau also included 15 Vice-Chairpersons -- three from each of the five regional groups -- from Canada, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Iran, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Nigeria, Peru, Philippines, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovenia and Uganda.

Chairperson’s Summary

Ms. INOGUCHI said, in her written summary, that the Meeting had been held amid an increased awareness of the disastrous human consequences of the use of illicit small arms in combination with sophisticated advances in the field of information and transport technologies.  That added a greater sense of urgency to, and created a more supportive global climate for implementing the Programme of Action.  The problem of illicit trade in small arms and light weapons was multidimensional, requiring a comprehensive and inclusive approach to all its aspects, incorporating national, regional and global dimensions.  No State alone could prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons, she said.

She noted that significant progress had been made worldwide within barely two years of adopting the Programme of Action, in terms of public disclosures about the origins, destinations, modus operandi and profiling of groups engaged in the illicit small arms trade.  New or amended legislation was an important element in moving forward, with over 90 countries now reporting that they had domestic laws to govern the illicit manufacture, possession and trade in weapons.  States had also revealed a much higher state of preparedness to prevent future illicit transfer and misuse of such weapons.

Since the Programme of Action had been adopted, there had been a growing need to develop a regional perspective to combat the illicit small arms trade, and regional initiatives had begun to take shape, she said.  International cooperation was also growing, especially with respect to brokering, which depended largely on international cooperation in information sharing, compliance and law enforcement.  In addition, States needed to agree on guidelines for authorizing exports, imports and the transit of small arms and light weapons.

She said that the lack of borders in international crime and migration trends was evident in the alarming rise in terrorist activities over recent years, compelling States to strengthen international cooperation in that area.  Reliance upon the same or similar pipelines for smuggling contraband goods, financial support through money laundering, and barter deals for swapping weapons and precious commodities, or illegal drugs, were well-known linkages of terrorism.

With respect to weapons collection and destruction, she noted that almost half of an estimated total of over 4 million weapons collected and disposed of during the last decade worldwide over the past two years.  The diversion of legitimate stocks was estimated as one of the main avenues for acquiring illicit weapons, and it was agreed that assistance was need to improve the security of armouries.  In addition, information sharing of existing national inventories could possibly offer a way of tackling cross boundary trafficking in weapons illicitly procured through pilferage of inadequately guarded stocks for countries sharing permeable frontiers.

Turning to marking and tracing, she recounted that the General Assembly had asked the Secretary-General to carry out a study on the feasibility of developing an international instrument to enable States to identify and trace small arms and light weapons.  A United Nations Group of Governmental Experts had been set up to address that matter and had now completed its work.  The need to control weapons originating from unauthorized manufacturers was a key concern raised, as those weapons could not be tracked by official means.

Thematic Discussions Continued

Group III Discussion

The meeting this morning continued its consideration of the issue of marking and tracing illicit small arms and light weapons, with speakers welcoming the report of the expert group on the subject.  The 23-member expert group was established by the Secretary-General, acting on General Assembly resolution 56/24 V of 2001.  The expert group recommended that a decision to negotiate, under United Nations auspices, an international instrument to identify and trace illicit arms and light weapons should be taken by the General Assembly at its fifty-eighth session.  They strongly stressed the need for an internationally binding tracing and marking system, with some urging its early negotiation.

Speakers described the systems their governments had in place to trace the manufacture and transfers of those weapons.  China’s representative said her Government had a stringent system, which allowed such tracing to be carried out.  The representative of Canada said the experts’ report had provided a solid foundation on which countries could enhance their approach to the problem of illicit small arms and light weapons.  Canada believed such an approach could move along two tracks -- increased practical cooperation between national authorities culminating in a central tracing facility and secondly, an international legal instrument.

The representative of the Republic of Korea offered that, in cases of military weapons, a six-digit marking system enabled identification and tracing of weapons.

The representative of Cuba said its views would be made known when the General Assembly took up the expert group’s report.  Australia’s representative said the expert group’s report was a step forward in the search for a solution to the problem of small arms proliferation.  The representative of Iran said his delegation had some questions on the expert group’s recommendations, which should be clarified when the Assembly considered the report.  Brazil’s representative strongly supported the expert group’s recommendations, adding that his country favoured negotiations on tracing to begin at an early stage.

Other speakers included the representatives of the Russian Federation and South Africa.

Group IV Discussion

Colombia’s representative stressed that little had been done in the global arena to combat the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons linked to drug trafficking, transnational organized crime and terrorism.  Echoing the voices of several other speakers, he noted that the illicit traffic of weapons and terrorism had common characteristics, taking advantage of globalization and the worldwide development of financial and communication networks to obtain profits.  Those crimes were closely linked, and collaboration and cooperation in the international sphere was vital in defeating them.

He also noted that the majority of conflicts where small arms and light weapons were used took place in the developing world, but that most of those arms were produced in the developed world.  Moreover, conflicts and terrorism occurring in the developing world were financed with money obtained from the traffic of drugs and the illicit trade of diamonds, laundered in the financial system of the developed world.  The international community should demand that countries producing small arms and light weapons assume special responsibility in preventing the transfer of those weapons to criminals and terrorists, and to ensure they are not diverted to illicit commerce.

Other speakers agreed that diamonds had been used by violent groups to acquire arms which were used in the atrocities committed in Sierra Leone.  Sierra Leone’s representative emphasized that international attention and cooperation was needed with respect to the links between precious minerals and the trade in small arms and light weapons.  He urged nations to implement the national certification system for diamonds, particularly through the “Kimberley process”, which concerns a certification scheme for the international trade in rough diamonds.

Several speakers stressed the importance of implementing national small arms and light weapons controls, particularly on exports, which was crucial in preventing the proliferation of such weapons.  Japan’s representative noted that the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 had taken place only one month after the Programme of Action was adopted, which delegates at the time had said made that text even more relevant.  Some had urged that the Programme be made more permanent.

Delegations also noted that various international groups were working on problems related to small arms, trafficking in drugs and organized crime, and that there should be more coordination between them.  Mexico’s representative pointed to deficiencies in the system for dealing with linkages of violent crime to small arms and light weapons, recommending that a more holistic approach should be applied.

Group V Discussion

The meeting next took up the question of import/export controls and illicit brokering.  Speakers generally called for universal instruments to deal with the problem to prevent abuses.  Others also stressed stringent application of national laws where they existed. 

Italy’s representative, speaking on behalf of the European Union and its associated States, said there was a compelling need to prevent the acquisition of small arms and light weapons by terrorist groups and transnational criminal organizations.  The Union believed that export authorizations should be assessed on a case-by-case basis, taking into account such factors as respect for international commitments and human rights, and compatibility of the arms exports with the technical and economic capacity of the recipient country.

The European Union had adopted a common position on arms brokering activities, with guidelines that would have to be reflected in existing or future legislation of its member States.

The Netherlands called for adequate national legislation to regulate arms brokerage, noting that currently, only 16 countries had such regulations.  To facilitate the development of international action on the issue, he said it would be helpful for good practices to be identified and elements of model regulations developed.  A definition of brokering and brokering activities was important.  Sanctions and enforcement measures should also be considered, and increased cooperation in export control, border control and customs could be promoted.

The representative of the Russian Federation drew attention to the problem of the “re-export” of weapons because of the dangers of those falling into the wrong hands, and he called for action in that regard.

Costa Rica’s speaker urged codification of obligations of States on the illicit small arms question.  States producing such weapons had a responsibility to the international community, its representative said.  He put forward elements of a framework convention on the issue, including measures to be applied to weapons transfers.

Belgium’s representative said it had strengthened its criteria governing arms transfers and legislation on brokering.

The representative of China said countries should formulate measures to control arms exports and promote information exchange.  It strictly enforced its arms exports, and sanctions were applied against violators.  The representative of the Republic of Korea said his country upheld all of its commitments with regard to strict observance of arms exports, and called for the simultaneous examination of the issue of illicit exports and imports.

The United Kingdom’s speaker called for cooperation and technical and financial assistance to those countries that needed them.  Regional approaches could be applied for effective regulation of arms exports, he said.  Similarly, the representative of Canada stressed international cooperation and the provision of technical assistance.  He called for political will to enforce sanctions.

Mexico’s representative said his country had committed itself to strict application of controls to guard against abuses.  It had established a regime of export and transfer controls and had called for a universally applicable instrument and code of conduct on arms exports.  Mali’s representative called for international assistance to deal with the issue of arms brokering.

The representative of Brazil called for multilateral approaches to international instruments on arms exports and illicit brokering, under United Nations auspices, while Finland’s speaker offered copies of its legislation on brokering.

Group VI Discussion

One speaker noted that small arms caused human suffering and violated all human rights, yet human rights had not been included in the Programme of Action.  Others noted that the Programme also made no mention of official development assistance (ODA), which was needed by some countries to help eradicate the small arms problem.

Italy’s representative, speaking on behalf of the European Union and associated States, said that specific projects to limit the availability of arms should be integrated into development projects.  Those projects should include weapons collection and security sector reform programmes, confidence-building measures, and incentives to encourage the voluntary surrender of illegally-held surpluses. 

Other speakers noted that children, women and the elderly were often the victims of small arms and light weapons, and should be the first beneficiaries of the Programme of Action.  The representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo observed that more and more children were seen among the ranks of combatants, who must then reintegrate into their homes to enjoy their fundamental rights and freedoms.  Canada’s representative urged the international community to refrain from supplying weapons to parties in armed conflicts using children as soldiers, and stressed the need to provide educational opportunities for youth as alternatives to a life of violence.

Participants also pointed out that the presence of small arms and light weapons in communities compromised the security of women, and reduced their capacity to perform family functions.  Others pointed to the leadership role women could play in rebuilding and disarming their communities.

Other speakers stressed the need to address the root causes and demand factors of small arms proliferation. The daunting challenge of reducing small arms could only be met if governments and civil society heeded economic and sociological conditions encouraging their use. Moreover, the wide availability and misuse of such weapons undermined economic development and discouraged investment. 

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