Disarmament and International Security

Disarmament and International Security

Topic: B

Illegal Arms Trade

Submitted by: Afghanistan

Ever since the creation of small arms in 1364, they have been built, sold, and stolen illegally. The same has happened with weapons of mass destruction, and still happens today. In Afghanistan, the war on terrorism haswaged on since 2001. Many of these acts of terrorism were committed with illegal arms, sold, built, or smuggled illegally to radical groups.

Afghanistan has one of the top black markets in the world. They are ranked at 29 in the world, with the black market worth around 7.3 billion U.S. dollars (approx. 420990985399.99 Afghani). In the U.S., the Chinese model of the AK-47 assault rifle averages over 600 U.S. dollars. In Afghanistan, the same firearm can be bought for less than 400 U.S. dollars. These black market weapons are both cheap and available to many. Even people trusted to uphold the law will sometimes jump at the opportunity. In 2010, a massive fraud was discovered at Kabul Bank, involving 114 fake stamps to be discovered, which were used to send document to counterfeit companies. This caused for many other scandals to be discovered by the government. These discoveries caused civilians to protest, saying that the government only wants all power. This then caused more people to invest in black market just to defy the government. Because of the majority of the black market industry being the buying and selling of drugs and alcohol, the problem is not as obvious as it should be.

On July 3rd, 2005, the Protocol against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms was registered. As of this month, Afghanistan has yet to sign, or accept, this Protocol. The problem is specifically section 12.c., which states that all countries will take action against the dealing of these weapons. Allies such as Germany, China, Turkey, and India have signed it, but others like Pakistan have not yet signed. This protocol has not been signed because, in doing so, Afghanistan will be stating that they have most to total control over the situation of illegal firearm manufacturing. To take control of the situation, we need to create a stronger law enforcement agency, along with spending more time educating the population on the numerous consequences related to illegal firearms. About 100 billion U.S. dollars are spent on law enforcement for the purpose of fighting the war on drugs. The amount of money spent on the war on illegal arms trafficking is only about three quarters as much. It is for this reason that the law enforcement is poorly educated on this matter.

In conclusion, more money is needed to fight the war on illegal weapon and their parts, along with more support from neighboring countries and their population. We advise that the UN spends more time on this matter, and that all countries should be informed of the problem, even if it isn’t in their area. Also, we seek support in this ongoing war to help raise the money to come to a solution. If there are no “fundraisers” that can do the job, than other methods like donations will help the cause. It is for these reasons that we believe that we should band together and fight this war as a team.

Works Cited

"2013 Investment Climate Statement - Afghanistan." U.S. Department of State. U.S. Department of State, n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.<http://www.state.gov/e/eb/rls/othr/ics/2013/205289.htm>.

"Afghani to Dollar - AFN to USD." - Afghan Afghani to American Dollar Exchange Rate. Fx-rate.net, 2014. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.<http://fx-rate.net/USD/AFN/>.

"Guns in Afghanistan - Firearms, Gun Law and Gun Control." Guns in Afghanistan - Firearms, Gun Law and Gun Control. Ed. Philip Alpers. Sydney School of Public Health, 2014. Web. 3 Dec. 2014.<http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/afghanistan>.

"Ranking of Illegal Economic Activities." Havocscope RSS. Havocscope, 09 Apr. 2010. Web. 1 Dec. 2014.<http://www.havocscope.com/country-profile/>.

"Small Arms S.Asia." Small Arms SAsia. Smallarmsasia, 2011. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.

"UNODA - Small Arms and Light Weapons." UN News Center. UN, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014.<http://www.un.org/disarmament/convarms/salw/>.

"UNTC." UNTC. United Nations, 2014. Web. 17 Dec. 2014. <https://treaties.un.org/pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XVIII-1&chapter=18&lang=en>.

"Wasting Billions on Drug Law Enforcement." Wasting Billions on Drug Law Enforcement. Count The Costs, 2014. Web. 15 Dec. 2014. <http://www.countthecosts.org/seven-costs/wasting-billions-drug-law-enforcement>.

Submitted by: Colombia

In the past, nuclear technology has been used for warfare. More recently in developed and developing countries, nuclear technology has been found in the wrong hands and has not been used for peaceful uses. Such as in the Cold War where Russia and the United States threatened to literally blow each other up with nuclear warheads. As technology has evolved in the world it has been used for more peaceful things, too. For example it has been used for medicines and energy. Colombia however doesn’t have very much nuclear capability. Recently the Colombian military raided a FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) camp in Ecuador. 66 pounds of uranium were recovered as well as two FARC laptops.

Colombia and Latin America have worked on a solution for this situation. Colombia signed the Treaty of Tlatelolco in 1967 and ratified it in 1972. The treaty has served as a model for all future nuclear weapon free zone agreements. The treaty prohibits Latin American states from acquiring, possessing, developing, testing or using nuclear weapons, and prohibits other countries from storing and deploying nuclear weapons on their territories. Reducing the risk of nuclear use by terrorists and nation-states requires a broad set of complementary strategies, targeted at reducing state reliance on nuclear weapons, stemming the demand for nuclear weapons and denying organizations or states access to the essential nuclear materials, technologies and know-how.

Nuclear energy is currently one of the most significant issues in geopolitics and geo-economics globally and often times bring with it military concerns, struggles among oil- producing and consuming countries and of course, and the pursuit of international political power. In Ecuador the Colombian military has found a large amount of nuclear substance that could have been harmful to the countries land, economy, or even public morality towards the government. They have been in a treaty agreement and that should help ratify any nuclear substances from Latin America. Today, more than ever, it is necessary to join effort to advance irreversibly towards a world free of nuclear weapons. Latin America and the Caribbean have done their job, now it is time for every nation to seek not only peace, but general nuclear disarmament as well.

Work Cited

"Treaty of Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean." Www.nti.org. Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean, n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014. <www.nti.org%2Ftreaties-and-regimes%2Ftreaty-prohibition-nuclear-weapons-latin-America-and-caribbean-lanwfz-tlateloco-treaty%2F>.

Submitted by: Denmark

According to Globalissuses.org, 59% of all weapons are carried legally. The other 41% carry arms illegally. Occurring all around the world, the illegal arms trade is a stealthy, foxy business. An arm trafficking is the illegal movement of prohibited weapons or ammunition. To carry a registered weapon, you must have a license. As of this year, the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) was ratified by Denmark on the second of April in 2014. Armscontrol.org said that it establishes common standards for the international trade of conventional weapons and seeks to reduce the illicit arms trade. They also said “The treaty aims to reduce human suffering caused by illegal and irresponsible arms traders.” Article 2 states that the right to own, buy, sell or transfer all means of armed resistance, including handguns, is denied to civilians by this section of The Arms Trade Treaty. Both licit and illicit, the estimated total number of guns held in Denmark is 650,000. The government is said to have 346,005 firearms. Police have 19,640 of the government firearms. Denmark ratified the Arm Trade Treaty this year, stating that they don’t agree with the document. In 2008, Denmark’s total number of gun-related deaths totaled up to 67. Only 2 of the deaths were unintentional.

Smugglers make big money from the trading of illegal arms. There is a process called the “ant trade”, which means that smugglers convey only a few weapons at a time. The annual total cost of all of the smuggling of guns and ammunition is 33, 128, and 879 in 2011. Denmark’s regulation on illegal arms is prohibitory, meaning that Denmark illegal arms are kept under close watch.

We believe that to solve this worldwide crisis, Denmark should try to bring in more security that would try to find the smugglers and arrest them by having stricter illegal arms laws. Denmark should also try to monitor the amount of illegal arms being exported out of the country and what country they are being imported into. For example, if the exported number of arms suddenly increased, and then the number of imported illegal arms increases in another country, then Denmark officials could trace those guns back to their country.

The UN DISEC committee should monitor the illegal arms being transported through their country. If the trading gets to be too much for the Danish government to handle, they may have to call in reinforcements, such as the US, UK, Germany, Japan or one of their other allies. Other actions may press Denmark to start to look at how they see the arms trade, such as an increased number of weapons going through Denmark and neighboring countries. Some of the countries may be Germany, Sweden, Norway, or the UK. In conclusion, the illegal arms trade is a serious matter that everyone must take part in to stop for the safety and security of civilians around the world.

Works cited:

"Disarmament & International Security / 1st Committee - 60th Session of the United Nations General Assembly." UN News Center. UN, n.d. Web. 18 Dec. 2014. <http://www.un.org/ga/60/first/>.

"Guns in Denmark - Firearms, Gun Law and Gun Control." Guns in Denmark - Firearms, Gun Law and Gun Control. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Dec. 2014. <http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/denmark>.

Central Intelligence Agency. Central Intelligence Agency, n.d. Web. 17 Dec. 2014. <https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/da.html>.

"Committees and Topics." Cleveland Council on World Affairs. CCWA, 2014. Web. 18 Dec. 2014. <http://www.ccwa.org/programs/model-united-nations/committees-and-topics/>.

"UNODA - About the Arms Trade." UN News Center. UN, 2014. Web. 18 Dec. 2014. <http://www.un.org/disarmament/convarms/ArmsTrade/>.

Submitted by: Guatemala

Illegal arms trade is a huge problem. In most countries carrying arms requires a license. But, there are some people who carry and use arms illegally. Occurring all around the world, the illegal arms trade is an elusive and sly business.There are an estimated 875 million small arms in circulation worldwide, produced by more than 1,000 companies from nearly 100 countries (theconversation.com). According to the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms, more than three million small arms were exported in 2012. “More than half a million people die every year as a result of armed violence. There is, on average, one victim worldwide every minute, Ryan said in a statement at the Review Conference of the Programme of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons (undp.org).

As DISEC it is our job to keep people safe. As we have already said, illegal arms trade is a huge safety threat. Seemingly every day, the news provides examples of the deadly consequences of weapons falling into the hands of criminals, pirates, terrorist groups, rebels, and untrustworthy governments. “Gun violence fuelled by illicit weapons destroys communities, economic stability and the rule of law; it destabilizes legitimate governments and extinguishes any hope of eliminating poverty for people living in conflict zones,” said Jordan Ryan, UNDP Assistant Administrator, at the conference of UN Member States (undp.org).
To solve this conflict, the UN should try to make an agreement with the countries so that stopping illegal arms trade is top priority. They should try to stop one problem at a time-like ant trade. Ant trading is trading a small amount of weapons at a time to accumulate to a very large amount (smallarmssurvey.org). To fix this problem, the UN can try to get countries to increase the penalty for illegal arms trading and/or supporting. Also we plan to obliterate the problem by the year 2025. The large penalty could be life in prison or a large fine.

Bibliography

"Preventing Illegal Flow of Guns Is Key to Reducing Poverty."UNDP. UNDP, 7 Sept. 2012. Web. 8 Dec. 2014. <http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/articles/2012/09/07/preventing-illegal-flow-of-guns-is-key-to-reducing-poverty-/>.

"Illicit Trafficking."Small Arms Survey -. Small Arms Survey. Web. 8 Dec. 2014. <http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/weapons-and-markets/transfers/illicit-trafficking.html>.

"Illegal Small Arms Trade Requires a Global Response."The Conversation. The Conversation, 12 Feb. 2014. Web. 8 Dec. 2014. <http://theconversation.com/illegal-small-arms-trade-requires-a-global-response-22560>.

Submitted by: Haiti

Out of the 659 million weapons in the world only 59% are carried illegally. Out of the $60,000,000 of arms trade 10-20% of it is illegal. A United Nation conference held in July of 2001 concluded without a compromise. An arms trade treaty has been written but only 32 states have ratified it out of the 50 that need to ratify it. The treaty keeps weapons away from pirates, warlords, and gangs. The problem is that gangs are getting weapons that they are not supposed to have.

In Haiti the right to own guns is not guaranteed by law. In Haiti they destroy surplus weapons rather than return them to the secondary arms market to reduce the number of guns in Haiti. Haitians has been getting their firearms mostly from the USA since the 1980s. Haiti has signed the arms trade treaty so that means they don't support illegal arms trade. Most guns imported in Haiti are imported legally. But the arms trade treaty has not been enforced yet so it doesn’t affect anyone who has signed it. It isn't enforced because not enough countries have ratified it.

Haiti feels that illegal arms trade is becoming a problem and it needs to be stopped. If illegal arms trade stops there could be fewer arguments that would lead to a war. Illegal arms trade also affects governments. Even though most guns in Haiti are legal some are not legal and that affects their government because they have some illegal firearms.

Submitted by: Iraq School: Monticello Middle School

Dwight D. Eisenhower once said,1 " Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every

rocket fired signifies in the final sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those

who are cold and are not clothed..." The buying and selling of weapons is not bad or good by