Small Arms and Light Weapons

By Ann Njenga

May 14th 2007

Each year there is more than 500 million small arms and light weapons (SALW) in circulation around the world coupled with over 16 billion rounds of ammunition. Small arms are weapons that can be carried and used by one or two people like handguns, assault rifles and sub machine guns. Light weapons on the other hand are designed to be deployed and used by a small crew like mines, grenades, anti-tank or anti-aircraft guns and explosives. Since these weapons are light, easy to use and manufactured to military specifications for use as lethal instruments of war, they more often find themselves in the wrong hands. These weapons kill one person every two minutes somewhere in the world, the highest level of firearm deaths is mainly found in Latin America, Caribbean and Africa thus devastating families and causing an incalculable suffering to its casualties.

Small arms and light weapons continue to pose an enormous humanitarian challenge, particularly in internal conflicts where insurgent militias fight against government forces. In these conflicts, a high proportion of the casualties are civilians who are the deliberate targets of violence — a gross violation of international humanitarian law. This has led to millions of deaths and injuries, the displacement of populations, and suffering and insecurity around the world. After conflicts, small arms become instruments for other forms of violence, such as crimes and banditry, disruption of economic or foreign aid, and interference with efforts to deliver food, medicine, and supplies to people in dire need of relief. Refugees are often afraid to return to their homes because of the large number of weapons still in the hands of the population.

symbolized by the possession of a gun .It is evident that it is mostly men that dominate the military and the police and in most cases women who are in military or ex combats are often seen as too manly hence unmarriageable. Men also dominate domestic firearms ownership and women represent a very small proportion of gun owners but tend disproportionately to be victims of gun violence.

Role of media

The media plays a great role in the way it represents guns to the society. The link between “guns” and masculinity is (re)produced with particular intensity by media representations of weapons in industrialized countries in which the media is one of the principal conduits of culture. American media, in particular, tend to portray heroes as using violence as a justified means of resolving conflict and prevailing over others. Many want to identify themselves  as the cool Rambo or James bond and the violent video games like star craft has captured the attention of many including children. The association between masculinity and guns has also been reproduced by a variety of cultural practices worldwide (guns in entertainment, video, commercial ads and childhood toys). This is very important in understanding the demand for guns and the ways to address this demand.

The effects of guns on women

The usage of small arms has had a negative impact on women as many are forced to endure rape and other sexual abuses, abduction and endure the kidnapping and killing of their husbands and children. The traumatic experience for women is beyond imagination especially in conflict zones, powerless in the face of armed solders they are routinely gang raped and abused. Many young girls are forced into motherhood and their dreams and hopes for a brighter future shattered. With the adult male population greatly diminished in conflict areas , women also often become the main provider for their devastated families and the presence of small arms makes this task increasingly difficult.

What is being done?

The Use of Small Arms being a global threat, the United Nations (UN) together with other Non governmental organizations have initiated a Program of Action to tackle the illicit trade of small arms (SALW), to which most member states have agreed to adhere. Regional organizations have agreed to more advanced frameworks, such as the Nairobi Protocol for the Great Lakes and the Horn of Africa, the SADC protocol, or the Organization of American States. These commit governments to a set of standards and principles that can act as impetus for improved national control. The biggest problem is that Each Member states create its own internal gun law and the UN has no jurisdiction over any States national legislation. Also not all governments have agreed to sign up to the international agreement.

Challenges

One of the greatest challenges being faced over the gun policy is the lack of comprehensive data. Although the UN Arms Register tries to keep track of major weapons holdings, there is no global reporting system for small arms. Some countries make information available about the small arms of their armed forces and law enforcement agencies; others release estimated data on public ownership. Most refuse to release anything or simply do not know.

Certain gun rights organizations like the National Rifle Associations argue that each person has a right to self-defense, and that the most effective way of doing so is by keeping and bearing arms. They point out that the warlords in conflict areas will always have access to weapons, and disarmament efforts only serve to disarm the population, creating more defenseless victims.

The role of firearms legislation in promoting the safety of women has also been well established. However, the extent to which violence against women is recognized as a crime varies from country to country. It is also well known that Gender shapes the formulation of policy regarding firearms, as men dominate the political structures in most countries and global institutions such as the UN,  the notions of masculinity hence has “invisible” effects on the ways in which policy debates and research are constructed.

The lack of arms controls allows some countries like the USA, Russia, and China to profit from the misery of others.

While great international attention is focused on the need to control weapons of mass destruction, the trade in conventional weapons continues to operate in a legal and moral vacuum.

Most of the major producers of the small arms have in most cases disregarded UN arms embargoes and continued to export arms to countries plagued by conflict and insecurity.

There are currently no universally accepted, legally binding global standards that apply in every country to prevent irresponsible arms transfers. The duty to control small arms transfers ultimately lies with governments, demanding both the will and capacity to act at the government level if effective legislation is to be enacted. National-level export regimes are often flawed by legislative loopholes that permit the transfer of small arms to irresponsible end users, or lack laws to prohibit arms brokering.

The UN program of action fails to address the licensed arms trade in any form. Also existing regional and international agreements only request that governments act to curb future arms transfers, proposing little regarding the control of arms already in circulation. These regional and international agreements have failed to recognize the significance of the demand in arms. As long as there is demand, arms production will continue, and, in the absence of stringent, universal controls, many of these arms will inevitably find themselves in the wrong hands. A critical aspect of controlling the illicit arms trade must therefore be the eradication, or the reduction, of arms demand.

Sources

http://www.iansa.org

http://www.seesac.org

http://www.worldrevolution.org

http://www.fuf.se

 http://www.oecd.org

 http://www.amaniforum.org

http://www.controlarms.org

http://www.irinnews.org

Posted by NARC-KS editorial.