Against this daily death toll, the political leaders of Brazil, Cambodia,
Mali, Macedonia, Costa Rica, Finland and the Netherlands have all pledged
their support for an international Arms Trade Treaty. This landmark
announcement comes just two months after the Control Arms campaign was
launched by Amnesty International, Oxfam and the International Action
Network on Small Arms (IANSA). Britain, the world's second largest arms
exporter, has often boasted of its 'tough' export controls but has not yet
backed the Arms Trade Treaty.
Since the launch of the Control Arms campaign on 9 October 2003, thousands
of people across the UK have added their faces to the Million Faces
Petition, calling on the British government to back the Arms Trade Treaty.
British celebrities including Emma Thompson, Dido, Liberty X, Daniel
Bedingfield, Joe Fiennes, Jamie Theakston, Frank Skinner, Skin, Harvey,
John Hannah, Helen Baxendale and Beverly Knight have signed up to the
campaign. Politicians are also coming on board with dozens of MPs backing
the treaty and Charles Kennedy, leader of the Liberal Democrats, choosing
Human Rights Day to announce his support for the treaty.
Charles Kennedy said:
"The arms trade is potentially the most deadly trade in the world; it is
vital that there should be binding international regulation. If, as a
nation, we are serious about protecting human rights and working for
peace, then Britain should back an Arms Trade Treaty. This is an important
campaign which has the potential to save many, many lives."
Kate Allen, Director of Amnesty International UK said:
"The growing support for an Arms Trade Treaty shows that governments the
world over recognize the need for tougher controls on the arms trade. The
UK, the second largest exporter of weapons, must now follow their lead and
sign up to legally binding arms control. Without such a commitment their
responsibility to uphold the Universal Declaration on Human Rights can be
little more than hollow words."
Barbara Stocking, Director of Oxfam said:
"Today, fifty-five years after the declaration of human rights was
signed, we're pleased to see a developing commitment to back up the
declaration by controlling the weapons which are responsible for so many
human rights violations. We are seeing the first vital steps towards
bringing the arms trade under control. Britain must not allow itself to
fall behind."
Other governments have already agreed to support the Arms Trade Treaty.
Brazil's President Lula confirmed his readiness to play a key role in
pushing for an international treaty to control arms in a recent meeting
with Amnesty International. This reflects his concern about human rights
abuses flowing from gun violence in Brazil and the proliferation of arms
in Africa. He committed himself to: "...undertake all efforts to build a
network and create a positive balance in favour of arms control."
Announcing Finland's support on Human Rights Day, Mr Erkki Tuomioja,
Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs said:
"Now is the time to proceed in creating international rules for the arms
trade? Finland from its own part is ready to support the process towards
an Arms Trade Treaty."
Sar Kheng, Deputy Prime Minister of Cambodia said: "As a country that has
been severely affected by weapons, Cambodia will support the international
Arms Trade Treaty. The Royal Government of Cambodia is committed to
controlling weapons ? which have such a great impact on humanity, society,
the economy and peace."
Atzo Nicolaï, the Minister for European Affairs for the Netherlands,
speaking on behalf of the Prime Minister, said:
"The government strives for the realisation of legally binding
international agreements on export controls?over small arms and light
weapons."
Amadou Toumani Touré, President of Mali, a country that has been at the
forefront of efforts to address the arms crises in west Africa, said:
"Mali is honoured to launch the Control Arms campaign and we fully support
it. Mali will play its role in pushing for tougher international arms
controls... across the African continent."
Sally Joss, IANSA Network Coordinator said:
"This progress is fantastic news for people who live in fear of armed
violence across the world. After decades of an explosion in arms
proliferation, governments are beginning to listen to their citizens
demands for change."
Background:
Conventional arms kill more than 500,000 people every year: one person
every minute. There are 639 million small arms in the world, or one for
every ten people, produced by over 1,000 companies in at least 98
countries.
Visit our web site: www.controlarms.org