Article
Small arms and light weapons- weapons that can be carried by an individual soldier-are most commonly used in the local wars of the post-Cold War era. In the 1990s, about 4 million soldiers and civilians were killed by small arms in internal conflicts of the developing world.
A new report from the WPF Program on Intrastate Conflict, Conflict Prevention, and Conflict Resolution offers a comprehensive strategy to curb illegal small arms trafficking, which has fueled an increasing number of armed conflicts.
The Scourge of Small Arms outlines measures that the U.S. and international organizations can take to combat the proliferation of light weapons.
The proposals include the monitoring and tracking of weapons, the creation of an international database of traffickers, and the establishment of a United Nations Convention that criminalizes illicit small arms sales.
More people have been killed by small arms in wars in this decade than by major weapons systems. Millions have been wounded and displaced from their homes due to civil wars fueled by small arms.
The easy availability of small arms also assists drug trafficking, terrorism, organized crime, and much more.
WPF Program Director Robert Rotberg said, "as ethnic and internal conflicts proliferate, the flood of small arms becomes a relentless tide."
Portable, cheap and readily procured, these light weapons are supremely destructive. It is estimated that as many as 500 million small arms may currently be in circulation in the developing world. The global trade in these weapons is valued at $7 billion a year.
About 70 countries manufacture small arms, but the biggest suppliers are the United States, Russia, the Czech Republic, China, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Brazil, and Bulgaria.
Authors Rotberg and Michael Klare focus on how supplies of small arms can be controlled by initiatives and actions from the United Nations, the European Union, or the U.S. They recommend ways to advance awareness of the problem, to make the trade more accountable and transparent, and to curb illicit sales and shipments.(www.ksg.harvard.edu/bcsia/wpf.)