Civil Society organization call on Indian Government to support the United Nations process for an International Arms Trade Treaty

New Delhi, 25 September 2009:

As a part of a 12 days international campaign from International Day of Peace to International Day of Non-Violence, Control Arms Foundation of India (CAFI) in collaboration with United Nations Information Centre, New Delhi, organized a two days experts Round-table conference titled "Armament, Disarmament & Non- Proliferation: Continuing our quest for strengthening sustainable peace and security in India and Southern Asia region and understanding the United Nations Process for a proposed Arms Trade Treaty" on 23 and 24 September 2009 at the UN Conference Hall, New Delhi.

The conference looked into the various issues of armament, disarmament and non-proliferation efforts that have held the attention of the world and India in particular after the terror attacks in Mumbai on 26 November 2008. It also looked into the recently concluded historic consensus at the United Nations where most of the UN member states agreed that international action is needed to address the problem of the unregulated arms trade and transfer.

Air Commodore (retd) Jasjit Singh, Director Center for Air Power Studies, and Arundhati Ghose, former Indian Ambassador to the United Nations on Disarmament, at the inaugural session of the Experts Conference "Armaments, Disarmament & Non-Proliferation" to strengthen sustainable peace and security in India and South Asia and to understand the United Nations Process for a proposed Arms Trade Treaty" from 23 to 24 September 2009 in New Delhi

The conference was successfully observed with active participation of experts, diplomats, government officials from Ministry of Defence and Ministry of External Affairs, defence & security analyst, military personnel, delegates of the arms and defence industries, parliamentarians, journalists, lawyers, rights groups and survivors of armed violence.

The conference was inaugurated by Ambassador (retd) Arundhati Ghose, India's former Ambassador to the United Nations on Disarmament. In her address she stated "it is India that needs to be reminded on non-violence and not the rest of the world. The message has come back to us." She added that if we look at the statistics small arms are becoming weapons of mass destruction and regulation is a must."

More than 640 million small arms and light weapons are estimated to be in circulation worldwide, which are directly responsible for killing 300,000 people in armed conflict and 200,000 more in homicide and suicide, every year. In India alone 12 people die of gun shots every day.

At present, it is impossible to monitor or interrupt this deadly flow of weapons. This is because there are no agreed global standards for governments when authorizing exports or transfers. Recognizing that there is a strong need for a global Arms Trade Treaty to regulate international arms transfer the United Nations have started working in this direction after a remarkable number of 153 States voted in favor of an ATT resolution for establishing common international standards for imports and exports and transfer of conventional arms.

Panelists of the session "Making Disarmanent and Non-proliferation a movement in India" during the Experts Conference "Armaments, Disarmament & Non-Proliferation" from 23 to 24 September 2009 in New Delhi (from left): Shri Vipul, Deputy Secretary Disarmament in the Ministry of External Affairs, Chair Dr Radha Kumar, Director Nelson Mandela Center for Peace and Conflict Resolution, Rajiya Sabha Member Dr. E.M. Sudarsana Natchiappan and Dr. Neelavalli from the Chennai based Initiative "Women in Development"

Shri Vipul, Deputy Secretary of Disarmament and International Security Affairs at the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, stated that, "We feel that the issue is complex and needs a step-by-step approach. We remain constructively engaged on the issue in an open-ended working group which has met twice in 2009. India is committed towards the objective of global disarmament based on principles of universality, non-discrimination and effective compliance, especially the key countries."

"In recent decades, the States have adopted wide-ranging prohibitions and limitations on the transfer of chemical, biological and nuclear weapons. Yet it is conventional weapons- that are causing most of the death and injury in today's conflicts. Until recently, however, the transfer of conventional weapons had received little attention at the global level. And hence the need for common global standards in this field, to achieve consistent approaches to arms transfer decision-making among States", said Mr. Francois Stamm, Regional Delegate of the International Committee of the Red Cross in New Delhi.

Colonal (retd) Gobinder Singh, South Asia representative of the Defence Manufacturers Association UK, stated that "We shouldn't forget that the majority of the arms industry is already one of the most heavily regulated in the world, but that regulation is by no means universal in scope or effect. This uneven landscape provides one of the key arguments deployed in support of an ATT and one of our major challenges for compliance."

Panelists of Valedictory Session during the Experts Conference "Armaments, Disarmament & Non-Proliferation" from 23 to 24 September 2009 in New Delhi (from left): Lok Sabha Member Dr Thockchom Meinya from Manipur, Chair Prof Swaran Singh from Jawaharlal Nehru University New Delhi, and Kamla Bhasin from the South Asian Network of Gender Activists and Trainers (SANGAT)

Dr. Anuradha Reddy from the Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO), Ministry of Defence, Government of India added "sophisticated weapons are easily available in the hands of terrorist or non state actors. There is a need for efficient handling of terror stricken weapons".

"The government should take strict actions against these irresponsible arms trading which fuels conflict and should take the responsibility to help victims like me. The plights of widow like me and thousands of others are of no consequence to the government of my state" said Ms. Renu Hangzo, a woman gun survivor from Manipur who lost her husband and is presently supported by Manipur Women Gun survivors Network.

The conference ended with a very powerful valedictory address by Ms. Kamla Bhasin, Advisor, South Asian Network of Gender Activists and Trainers. In her speech she said "the quest for sustainable peace does not require arms. Peace is requires Justice. People who are angry, suppressed and uprooted ask for justice but they don't get it. In India 40% of women are battered. Peace starts from home, each home should be a peace zone. We must be the crack on the wall that divides, whether it is religion, caste, borders. Peace will come from these cracks."

The conference was a step towards the negotiation on the arms trade treaty that will reconvene in October 2009 at the United Nations First Committee on Disarmament. For more Information, please contact:

Control Arms Foundation of India
B 5/146, First Floor, Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi – 110029
c/o Ms Juliee Sharma
Mobile: +91-(0)9910580521 or Email: [email protected]

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This information is sent to e-pao.net by Binalakshmi Nepram (Founder, Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network). The sender can be contacted at Binalakshmi(at)gmail(dot)com
This PR was webcasted on September 25, 2009.

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