ILLICIT TRADE IN SMALL ARMS AND LIGHT WEAPONS:

 

The Case of the Southern African Development Community (SADC)

By



Donald P. Chimanikire
Trade & Development Centre — Trust


[TRADES CENTRE]


TRADES CENTRE 3 Downie Avenue Belgravia Harare Tel.: 790441 Fax: 790431 E-mail: tradesc@africaonline.co.zw Web: http://www.tradescentre.org.zw

November 2001


Trade and Development Issues No 16

Go back to the top

==========================

Table of Contents

	Page Abbreviations	5
1	1 Introduction — Arms trade and regional development;	6
	The case of SADC
2	The Spread of Small Arms — background and characteristics	10
3	Circulation of weapons in areas of tension	12
4	SADC Region & Trade in Arms - Legacy from past conflicts	14
5	Consequences of Arms Trade in SADC	18
6	Why the United Nations is Taking Action Against Trade in Weapons	20
7	Conclusions	22
8	References	25

Go back to the top

=====================

Preface

The United Nations Conference on the illicit Trade in All Its Aspects met at UN headquarters in New York from 9-20 July 2001 to address the increasing threat to human security, posed by such weapons. The decision to hold the Conference was taken at the 1999 session of the General Assembly.

Opening the Conference, UN Deputy-Secretary-General Louise Fróchette said there were an estimated 500 million small arms and light weapons in circulation-one for every 12 people on earth. The majority of those were in the hands of legal authorities, but a significant number, she said, ended up in the hands of irregular troops, criminals, drug traffickers and terrorists. Ms Fr6chette noted that even in societies not torn by conflict, the proliferation of small arms had contributed to a culture of violence and crime by eroding the authority of legitimate but weak governments and by undermining respect for international humanitarian law, making peacekeeping much more difficult.

The Conference aimed to find ways to curb and eliminate illicit trafficking in small arms. After lengthy negotiations and heated debate, officials from 140 countries reached agreement on the world’s first voluntary pact to limit the small arms trade, salvaging what had seemed to be a deadlock between the United States and other countries. The outcome, a comprehensive Programme of Action (POA) negotiated during the second week of the Conference, contained measures that States agreed to take at the national, regional and international levels. These included measures urging governments to require gun manufacturers to stark and, trace their guns, to establish laws regulating arms brokers, to ensure export controls on small arms and light weapons, to criminalize the illicit production and trade of weapons, and to destroy surplus stocks of small arms.

However, many participants were not pleased with the outcome, feeling that it had been considerably weakened in the face of strong resistance from the United States, China, Russia and several other Asian countries on such issues as civilian ownership of weapons and the transfer of weapons to non-state actors. Other contentions issues included arms brokering and questions about potentially, legally binding aspects of the agreement (NGLS Roundup 80, August 2001). Man delegations recognized that the African continent was at the centre of the global trade in illicit small arms and light weapons. Nigeria’s Defence Minister pointed out that even though the capacity of African States to manufacture small arms was very limited, the continent was unfortunately the recipient of large quantities of those weapons. The Assistant Secretary —General of Political Affairs for the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) appealed for POA that was precise and realistic, focusing on prevention, of illicit trafficking, strengthening export control measures, reducing arms surplus and monitoring existing stocks.


Go back to the top

======================

Introduction

Arms Trade and Regional Development; The Case of SADC
The arms business is one of the most reprehensible sectors of international trade. Arms traders have no compunction about making profits out of poverty-selling sophisticated jet fighters or nuclear submarines to countries, which lack the most basic means of survival. Even more regrettable is that arms dealers continue to ship weapons to potential trouble spots, showing little concern about fanning the flames of conflict. It is important to note that the arms trade is a notoriously murky business. When weapons are being bought or sold, the purpose for which they are intended is rarely clear — whether for legitimate needs or national security, for wars of external aggression, for campaigns of internal repression or merely satisfying the greed of those who benefit from the transactions. There has never been any satisfactory accounting for arms sales — to the citizens of the buying and selling countries, or to the international community.

One major challenge of the post-cold war era must be to design a comprehensive policy framework for arms sales. Clearly, much pressure for international sales comes from producers promoting overseas sales to recoup overheads and maximize profits. So, if industrial countries genuinely seek world peace, they should be concerned not just about their levels of procurement, but also about their national levels of production. The same should apply to development countries that also produce arms.

Southern Africa

The proliferation of and illicit trafficking in small arms are widely recognized as two of the biggest challenges faced by Southern Africa. The spread of small arms is directly, linked to high levels of crime, conflict, instability and underdevelopment. There is therefore growing pressure to address the problem, which was highlighted at the United Nations conference on the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons in all its aspects held in July 2001.

Web quiries? Please contact tradesc@africaonline.co.zw