Appendix 10: Further memorandum
from the UK Working Group on Arms
STATUS END
OCTOBER 2004
Explicit support for the ATT with public statements
made—Costa Rica, Mali, Cambodia, Finland, Iceland, Kenya,
UK, NZ.
Other countries with whom we are in detailed
discussions and/or who are actively involved in the development
of the ATT:
PUBLIC STATEMENTS
OF SUPPORT
FOR ATT
Costa Rica—early 2003
Statement from Costa Rica at UN Biennial Meeting
of States, New York, 8 July 2003, given by Ambassador Bruno Stagno
"The Government of Costa Rica, with a group
of NGOs, Nobel Peace Laureates, and other organizations, has been
dedicated to clarify which are the obligations of be States in
terms of controlling the transfer of small arms and light weapons.
This process has culminated in the elaboration of the Framework
Convention on International Arms Transfers [aka Arms Trade Treaty].
This project, based on existing international rights constitutes
a basic model for future internationally-binding agreements that
establish a series of rules and procedures to regulate international
arms transfers." [8]
Mali—mid 2003
Statement on HR day 2003: Amadou Toumani Touré,
President of Mali 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." Contact: Mohamed Coulibaly, mocoulibaly@oxfam.org.uk
Cambodia—9 October 2003
Statement on HR day 2003: 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".
Finland—10 December 2003
Announcing Finland's support on Human Rights
Day, 10 December 2003, 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."
Iceland—10 December 2003
"Iceland supports call for an arms trade
treaty to prevent arms being exported to destinations where they
are likely to be used to commit grave violations of international
human rights and humanitarian law."
Ambassador Hja«lmar W Hannesson, Permanent
Representative of Iceland to the UN, General Assembly Plenary,
Item 48 55th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, 10 December 2003.
Kenya—20 April 2004
Statement by Hon Stephen K Musyoka, Minister
for Foreign Affairs during the official opening of the second
ministerial review conference on small arms, Nairobi—20
to 21 April, 2004
"In this regard, Kenya supports the control
of arms initiative to reduce the proliferation and misuse of small
arms, and to convince governments across the world to introduce
a legally binding arms trade treaty. Such a treaty would provide
a set of common minimum standards for control of small arms transfers
and a workable operative mechanism for the application of these
standards, based on the existing responsibilities of states under
international law."
UK—30 September 2004
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jack Straw, at
Labour Party Conference, Brighton
In Sudan, as elsewhere, the carnage and the
terror is carried out not by sophisticated high-tech weapons but
by so-called small arms—rifles, revolvers, machine guns,
mortars.
In Europe we now have a comprehensive arms control
code of practice. But this is not the same across the world.
Greater international action is therefore needed
to tackle the plague of small arms in Africa and elsewhere.
I am therefore pleased to tell this conference
that we will start work soon with international partners, drawing
on experience from the EU, to build support for an international
arms trade treaty further to extend the international rule of
law.
http://www.labour.org.uk/ac2004news?ux-news-id=acO4js.
New Zealand—20 October 2004
Statement from NZ to the First Committee of
the UN
"While much of our work on small arms continues
to be focused on preventing gun violence in the Pacific, we are
increasingly aware of the lack of binding international controls
on small arms trade that continues to fuel armed conflict around
the world. For this reason, New Zealand will be lending its full
support to the initiative by Oxfam for an arms trade treaty. We
commend Oxfam in taking a new approach to stopping the irresponsible
transfer of small arms to countries that violate human rights
and international humanitarian law."
SOME SUPPORT
FOR ATT—NEEDS
FOLLOWING UP
Brazil—13 November 2003
President Lula confirmed his readiness to play
a key role in pushing for an international treaty to control arms
in a meeting with Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International
on 13 November 2003. He committed himself to: ". . . undertake
all efforts to build a network and create a positive balance in
favour of arms control."
Slovenia—12 December 2003
Made statement supporting an ATT for small arms
at Dublin conference.
Similarly positive comments at Human Security
Meeting meeting, Bamako, May 2005.
* * *
Macedonia—22 November 2003-8 June 2004
Boris Trajkovski, the then President, gave his
support to the creation of an Arms Trade Treaty as well as signing
up to the Million Faces Petition in Skopje at an NGO fair.
Boris Trajkovski was killed in a plane crash
26 February 2004.
New Macedonian president Branko Crvenkovski
signed up for the Million Faces Petition on 8 June 2004.
Spain—9 July 2004
* * *
Russia—23 September 2004
* * *
* * *
* * *
* * *
* * *
REGIONAL/MULTILATERAL
STATEMENTS
Red Cross and Red Crescent—6 December 2003
28th International Conference of the Red Cross
and Red Crescent. "Protecting Human Dignity",
The Agenda for Humanitarian Action, 6 December
2003, was agreed by 191 States party to the Geneva Conventions
as well as the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the Federation
and ICRC.
General Objective 2—Weapons
In order to achieve the goal: Reduce the human
suffering resulting from the uncontrolled availability and misuse
of weapons:
2.3.1 States should make respect for international
humanitarian law one of the fundamental criteria on which arms
transfer decisions are assessed. They are encouraged to incorporate
such criteria into national laws or policies and into regional
and global norms on arms transfers.
* * *
HUMAN SECURITY
NETWORK, 28 MAY
2004
Ministerial Meeting, Bamako, 27-29 May
Chair's Summary
Minister of Foreign Affairs, HE Mr Moctar Ouane
The Network members recognised the need for
further progress on many key issues linked to the fight against
the illicit proliferation and misuse of small arms and light weapons.
With the 2005 Biennial Meeting of States and the 2006 Review Conference
of the programme of Action approaching, Network countries welcome
the Government of Mali's efforts to draw attention to such issues
as the need for responsible transfers of small arms, consideration
of the negative impact of transfers to non-state actors and the
need to consider international humanitarian law and human rights
when addressing the SALW problem. The Network took note of the
initiative by Norway, the Netherlands and the UK aimed at subjecting
arms brokering to adequate regulations. The Network also supported
the initiative within the framework of ECOWAS to develop a regional
convention on controlling trade and the illicit transfer of small
arms and light weapons in West Africa.
The Network expressed its appreciation for the
Government of Mali's ongoing leadership role in these issues,
including hosting the launch, on October 9th 2003, in Bamako,
of the world campaign on the control of weapons, aiming at the
adoption of an Arms Trade Treaty. Network members emphasized the
need for the international community to control the illicit transfers
of weapons in order to prevent armed violence, conflicts and human
rights violations. The Network committed itself as appropriate
and where possible, to pursuing productive initiatives in 2004
and 2005 that would contribute to the positive outcomes of the
2006 Review Conference of the UN Programme of Action.
January 2005
8 Con este fin en la mira, el Gobierno de Costa Rica,
junto a un grupo de organizaciones no gubermamentales, personalidades
galardonadas con el premio Nobel de la Paz y calificados, se ha
dedicado a esclarecer cua«les son concretamente las obligaciones
de be Estados en materia dé control del comercio de armas
pequen¥as y livianas. Este proceso ha cuilminado en la elaboratio«n
de un proyecto de Convencio«n Marco sobre las Transferencias
Internacionales de Amas. Este proyecto, basado en el Derecho International
existente, constituye un modelo para futuros acuerdos internacionalmente
vinculantes que establezcan una serie de las reglas y procedimientos
ba«sicos que regulen las transferencias internationales de
armas. Back
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