The death of
Dr Crispin Mbai last September shook the nation, as did the assassinations of Tom Mboya,
JM Kariuki, Pio Gama Pinto and Robert Ouko years before.
Other than raising political temperatures,
these deaths share a striking similarity: a failure by society to control the flow of
small arms.
Kenya is one of the countries where
millions of conventional arms are in the wrong hands.
Thousands are displaced, orphaned, widowed
or killed every year because of the thriving trade in small arms.
Though legitimate and well intentioned
— for self-defence and the maintenance of law and order — 59 per cent of small
arms produced conventionally find their ways to the wrong hands.
Many weapons traded in the international
market are used to fuel deadly conflicts or commit gross human rights violations and
abuses. To stop this carnage resulting from irresponsible trade in and use of weapons,
international trade in arms needs to be subjected to strict control. The only way to
ensure that all states strictly control the movement of arms is through the establishment
of a binding global treaty.
The Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) could be the
panacea because, if accepted, it will establish a firm and unambiguous international
mechanism to prohibit the sale of weapons where there is a clear risk that such arms could
be abused. International legal experts, human rights and peace organisations have already
drafted a model Arms Trade Treaty.
That Kenya is today home to hundreds of
thousands of refugees displaced from their homelands by armed conflicts tells volumes
about the cost of uncontrolled arms.
Hundreds of thousands of children have been
orphaned as a result of armed conflicts or petty crime as well.
The actions of those who commit such acts
are not only horrific, but also illegal under the International law. And yet in many
circumstances, such forces enjoy unfretted access to the international arms’ market,
which enables them to visit enormous suffering on humanity.
Armed conflicts pitting nations cause
massive human loss worldwide. Violations against international humanitarian law, which
include wilful killing, torture or inhuman treatment, illegal detention and unfair trial,
cause immense suffering to mankind.
Abuse
Weapons have also been known to cause gross
human rights abuses. They play a role, directly or indirectly, in the ability of armed
groups and security forces to abuse human rights.
The most severe ones include denial of the
right to life by use of lethal force, extra judicial killings, torture, amputations,
denial of basic freedoms through arbitrary arrests and lengthy pre-trails.
But all is not lost. The Arms Trade Treaty,
if operational, will help prevent these atrocities. First, it will help stop the flow of
weapons to abusive users, thus reducing the available means of violence and making the
recourse to armed force less immediate and deadly.
This will create a positive obligation on
arms’ exporters to ensure their weapons will not be misused. The treaty will put
pressure on suppliers and recipients to comply with international standards.
Besides spelling out basic minimum steps
that states must take in order to control the weapons trade, the treaty will ensure that
all states play by the same rules. The envisioned treaty spells out a common set of
minimum standards that states have to respect.
Arms manufacturers and brokers will have a
hard time finding a safe haven for irresponsible activities. The more states embrace ATT,
the greater the effect it will have.
The treaty requires states to incorporate
the rules into their national laws and make regular public reports of all arms transferred
to an international registry.
The core principles of the model ATT
include international arms transfers that require all international arms be authorised by
the appropriate state authorities and licences issued.
Governments have a responsibility not to
transfer arms where they are likely to be used to facilitate the commission of violent
crimes, adversely affect political stability or regional security and affect sustainable
development.
Why act now? The situation is critical.
More arms are being manufactured everyday. About 1,135 companies in at least 98 countries
produce arms, which add up to eight million new weapons each year. Civilian casualties are
increasing and modern weapons tend to exacerbate this trend. |
