What Next?

If one is to accept the Chinese proverb that "a journey of a thousand miles must commence with its first step," then the UN Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects could be vindicated over time. As Michel Rocard, Chairman of the Employment and Social Affairs Committee of the European Parliament and then co-chair of the Eminent Persons Group (EPG), told the UN: "I would not by any means consider the conference a failure; a process has been started, and the subject of small arms is open." ¹

An international commission of 23 world leaders close to the UN Secretary General and co-chaired by former OAU Secretary General Salim Ahmed Salim and Alpha Oumar Konare, the President of Mali, the EPG aims to advance Mr. Annan's "global small arms nonproliferation regime." As Mr. Salim said upon assuming the EPG co-chairmanship: "The deaths and destruction caused by small arms, the conflicts and instability that are being instigated and perpetuated through the use of small arms necessitate that urgent and concerted action need to be taken to address the problem. The EPG, composed by personalities with a diverse range of experiences at high levels of leadership and responsibilities and who come from different parts of the world, presents a tremendous opportunity for collectively and vigorously pursuing the goal of controlling small arms." ²

In preparation for the UN conference, the EPG galvanized political will in support of a broad conference scope and mandate. At issue was whether regulation of licit trade would remain on the table and to what extent the Program of Action (PoA) that resulted from the conference would be binding.

The EPG welcomed the PoA ³ as an important first step in global efforts to eradicate the illicit proliferation of small arms. ⁴ In particular, members welcomed the follow-up process whereby states will attempt to strengthen national legislation to control the production and transfer of small arms and to ensure that export standards conform to international law. Members of the EPG regretted, however, that the conference failed to agree on restricting transfers to non-state actors or on binding agreements to make illicit small arms traceable to their origins.

The EPG shares the disappointment among NGOs and states over the extent to which the majority had to yield to the minority to reach consensus on critical issues. Unfortunately, political intransigence and bureaucratic inertia impede small arms control. ⁵ Yet, the PoA provides sufficient provisions for a follow-up process. ⁶ As Secretary General Annan stated, "the PoA adopted by the conference foresees a role not only for governments, but very much counts on the action of civil society in taking measures to prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons. I am grateful for everything the EPG has done in this regards and I truly appreciate the Group's commitment to carry forward this important work." ⁷

The aftermath of the September 11 attacks underscores several disturbing trends, which were at the center of conference deliberations. Criminal non-state actors with enough cash to buy weapons are gaining control over civil society, posing serious dangers to democracy and human rights, and threatening prosperity. As a result, wars are no longer fought by organized armies of functioning nation-states. Rather, they are being fought by guerilla, criminal, and terrorist gangs intent on gaining power at the barrel of a gun, with small arms as the weapon of choice, the majority of victims being women and children. With these groups proliferating and operating across national boundaries, internal power struggles increasingly tend to evolve into larger regional wars.⁸

Secretary General Annan is right in calling for "these weapons to be brought back under the control of states, with states being made accountable for their transfer." ⁹ Former Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy confirmed that state responsibility is critical, "since it necessitates mechanisms for effective state regulation of the legal trade." ¹⁰ Further, "transparency is especially...