Reuters
1 July 1999

Red Cross Calls for Tighter Controls on Small Arms

GENEVA (Reuters) - The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) called for tighter controls on the sales of small arms Thursday after a new study found they are being used to gun down civilians in conflict zones.

ICRC said its first study on small arms showed rapid-fire assault rifles, pistols and submachine guns are illicitly circling the globe in a booming black market.

Often legally sold, they are later recycled and used to wreak havoc in war-torn regions ranging from Afghanistan to Cambodia, Rwanda, and lately Kosovo.

"In some places, it is cheaper to buy a weapon than a piece of bread," Yves Sandoz, head of ICRC's legal office, told a news conference to launch the 80-page study.

It paints a somber picture of casualties caused in the internal conflicts of the 1990s.

"Civilians have paid an appalling price for the widespread availability of weapons and ammunition in recent conflicts," said the agency, which has relief operations in 80 countries.

"Civilian casualties outnumber those of combatants in many internal conflicts," it said. "Many small arms and light weapons transfers involve 'black market' sales, the supply of weapons in defiance of embargoes, blockades and other legal sanctions."

Sales of small arms and light weapons are estimated to total $10 billion annually. Looser borders, arms surpluses left over from the Cold War and freer trade have aggravated the problem.

ICRC said an estimated 300 companies in 70 countries make small arms, a 25 percent rise between 1985 and 1995. A "new wave" of surplus weapons into developing countries can be expected in the next five to 10 years, as some ailing states of the former Soviet Union seek quick cash, and other states dump old arsenals while modernizing to join NATO.

ICRC urged governments to tighten and enforce export regulations to stop ammunition and arms from falling into the wrong hands, including those of children, a violation of international humanitarian law.

But ICRC officials conceded that the task was daunting. "A certain mobilization by governments has started. But it is a big business, with much money behind it," Sandoz said. "The objective is long-term. It will take time."

The Geneva-based ICRC urged extending the U.N. Register of Conventional Arms Transfers to cover small arms and light weapons, starting with assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades. It currently covers just five major weapons systems.