REINVIGORATING THE NARRATIVE THE BROADER BENEFITS OF THE ARMS TRADE TREATY Published by: The Centre for Armed Violence Reduction Sydney, Australia September 2017 Authors: Laura Spano, Director of Arms Control Philip Alpers, Programme Director Researcher and Contributing Writer: Nathan Page Copy Editor: John Linnegar Designer: Tanya Coelho DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.5259553 Disclaimer: Although this publication has been made possible by a grant from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, its contents are the sole responsibility of the authors. Where a state is identified by way of example, any such mention is cited from a reputable, publicly available source and is used in good faith. These, and any opinions expressed herein, do not necessarily represent the official position of the Australian Government. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This work would not have been possible without We bring together officials and key actors to tackle armed the reports, articles and materials from government violence prevention, using a ‘whole of government’ statements, UN agencies, civil society organisations approach. The Centre finds donors and provides training, (CSOs) and academic research already published on this capacity-building, technical expertise and tools to help topic. We also acknowledge with respect the Gadigal of identify and fill legislative, technical and policy gaps. Our the Eora Nation, the traditional custodians of the land on evidence-based research and analysis is made actionable which our publication was prepared. through context-specific policy recommendations determined by consensus. We deliver affordable, Copyright Information sustainable programmes, always in close collaboration Copyright © 2017 Centre for Armed Violence Reduction with local stakeholders. With support from the United Nations Trust Facility Supporting Cooperation on Arms Regulation (UNSCAR), our work has focused on applying global arms control instruments—the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) and the United With the exception of the Centre’s logos and the Nations small arms Programme of Action (UNPoA)— Australian Commonwealth Coat of Arms, all material predominantly in Southeast Asia, the Pacific and the presented in this publication is provided under the Caribbean. 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The copyright holder also requests that for impact CAVR also hosts the Secretariat of the Pacific Small assessment purposes, all such use be registered with the Arms Action Group (PSAAG), a network of civil society Centre at: [email protected] organisations in Oceania which acts as regional coordinator for Control Arms and supports linked The Centre for global systems such as the Arms Trade Treaty-Baseline Assessment Project (ATT-BAP) and the International Small Armed Violence Reduction Arms Control Standards (ISACS). The Centre for Armed Violence Reduction (CAVR), an The Centre for Armed Violence international non-governmental organisation (NGO), Reduction is a charity registered provides evidence-based research and services to prevent with the Australian Charities and and reduce armed violence as a necessary precondition Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC), for effective and sustainable development. In partnership ABN 62 161 762 778. with governments and civil society we promote public health and safety by analysing, encouraging and [email protected] contributing to effective regional and national armed www.ArmedViolenceReduction.org violence reduction initiatives. A non-profit entity, the Centre for Armed Violence Reduction Centre facilitates the implementation of multilateral arms control instruments by adapting their aims to local needs, @Centre_AVR history and capacity. PO Box 727 Surry Hills, 2010 Australia i) The terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia licence can be found at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/au/ 2 Reinvigorating the Narrative: The Broader Benefits of the Arms Trade Treaty FOREWORD The vision of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) is a noble Our Centre works mainly with non-States Parties to one. It aims to advance international peace, security the ATT, whose officials invariably ask the same two and stability, reduce human suffering and promote questions: ‘Why should we join the ATT?’ (What’s in it for cooperation and transparency to foster a responsible us?) and ‘How can we join the ATT if our system is not trade in conventional arms.1 These objects present yet fully complaint with its obligations?’ (Why not wait?). no simple task. As the first of its kind, the treaty To help officials persuade their leaders that the value of should set global standards high enough to improve the ATT outweighs its implementation cost, the Centre the regulation of international trade in conventional links the ATT to its wider range of benefits, then engages arms and to reduce and prevent their illicit trade and stakeholders to offer substantial assistance to developing diversion.2 states. Since the adoption of the ATT in 2013, states have CAVR has partnered with Australia’s Department of demonstrated support by entering the treaty into force in Foreign Affairs and Trade to reinvigorate this narrative by record time.3 At the time of writing, the ATT has 92 States gathering the broader benefits of the ATT into a single, Parties and 41 additional signatories.4 This is impressive. readily accessible reference brief and infographic. You However, for the treaty to be effective globally, it must have here a practical guide that enables officials, NGOs, be more widely adopted. Without universalisation, academics and participants in the arms trade to weigh weaknesses in the worldwide arms control system will the value of the ATT. continue to exist, while vulnerable points become the focus of diversion or irresponsible trade. We discuss the reasons why so many States Parties have joined the ATT, the concerns of non-States Parties When transferred irresponsibly or used illegally, who delay ratification or accession to the treaty, and conventional arms can pose a serious threat to peace, the strong links between the ATT and other global security, public health and sustainable development.5 frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals The Global Burden of Armed Violence estimates that (SDGs). We address national concerns about international half a million people die violently, in both conflict and arms regulation and demonstrate the value of the ATT non-conflict settings, each year.6 The annual number of in curbing the illicit and irresponsible trade without deaths in conflict has increased significantly since 2011,7 encroaching on sovereign rights. But we also tackle the with illicit small arms and light weapons responsible for myth that the ATT restricts the lawful possession and use 90% of those fatalities.8 The misuse of conventional arms of small arms. has the effect of forcing civilians from their homes9 and exacerbating sexual and gender-based violence.10 Modern For those who hesitate to adopt the ATT until they fill light-weight firearms are easily used by children, which gaps in their current systems, the reality is that states can promotes the recruitment of child soldiers. ‘come as they are’ to the treaty, then attract capacity- building assistance from within the ATT framework. We Even more than in armed conflict, the misuse of hope to inspire states to adopt the ATT and to support conventional arms has seen an increase in fatal violence them through the process, then to implement the treaty in communities at peace. Firearms are now used in nearly effectively as one means of reducing human suffering at 50% of all homicides11 —half, that is, of the estimated the point of a gun. annual total of 438,000.12 One-quarter of all the world’s violent deaths take place in 18 countries that represent Laura Spano, Director of Arms Control only 4% of the world’s population.13 The economic costs of violence are astronomical: up to two trillion US dollars Philip Alpers, Programme Director in violence-related economic losses could have been saved between 2000 and 2010 if the homicide rate had been reduced from an average of 7.4 to 3.0 deaths per 100,000 population.14 Reinvigorating the Narrative: The Broader Benefits of the Arms Trade Treaty 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 2 FOREWORD 3 SNAPSHOT: THE BROADER BENEFITS OF THE ARMS TRADE TREATY 6 A FEW QUICK FACTS 7 Frequently used acronyms and abbreviations 9 INTRODUCTION: THE ARMS TRADE TREATY 11 SECTION 1: THE SCOPE OF THE ARMS TRADE TREATY 13 What is the purpose of the ATT? Understanding its scope 13 SECTION 2: DEFINING RESPONSIBLE TRADE 17 How do states define irresponsible trade? 17 The ATT risk assessment: Doing due diligence 21 SECTION 3: THE ARMS TRADE TREATY AND TRANSPARENCY 26 Making the trade of conventional arms more transparent 27 SECTION 4: THE ARMS TRADE TREATY, PEACE AND SECURITY 33 THE BROADER BENEFITS: HUMAN SECURITY 34 The ATT and enhancing atrocity prevention 39 The ATT and combating gender-based violence 42 The ATT