CAATnews Fuelling the arms race in South Asia Issue 197 11 Goodwin Street, London N4 3HQ August/September 2006 Tel: 020 7281 0297 Fax: 020 7281 4369 £1.00 Email: [email protected] Website: www.caat.org.uk CAATnews IN THIS ISSUE... Editor James O’Nions [email protected] Legal Consultant Glen Reynolds Proofreader John Moseley Design Richie Andrew Contributors Kathryn Busby, Helen Close, Beccie D'Cunha, Ann Feltham, Symon Hill, Anna Jones, Alun Morinan, Ian Prichard, Mark Thomas, Rob Thorburn. Thank you also to our dedicated team of CAATnews stuffers. Printed by Russell Press on 100% recycled paper using only post consumer de-inked waste. Copy deadline for the next issue is 18 September and we shall be posting it the week beginning 2 October. Content of most website references are also available in print – contact Sign of the times. See page 10 PATRICK DELANEY the CAAT office. Contributors to CAATnews express their own opinions and do not necessarily reflect those of CAAT as an organisation. Contributors retain Shut DESO Day of Action 3 copyright of all work used. CAAT was set up in 1974 and is a Arms Trade Shorts 4-5 broad coalition of groups and individuals working for the reduction and ultimate abolition of the Arms Trade Detectives 6 international arms trade, together with progressive demilitarisation within arms-producing countries. Local Campaigns 7 Campaign Against Arms Trade 11 Goodwin Street, London N4 3HQ Cover story: India and Pakistan 8-9 tel: 020 7281 0297 fax: 020 7281 4369 email: [email protected] Action in Farnborough 10 web: www.caat.org.uk If you use Charities Aid Foundation Mark Thomas writes 11 cheques and would like to help TREAT (Trust for Research and Education on Arms Trade), please send CAF Parliamentary 12 cheques, payable to TREAT, to the office. Unlike CAAT, TREAT is a registered charity (No.328694) and Steering Committee Elections 13 will be able to use your donation for New Media Co-ordinator education and research. CAATnews is part of INK, the Independent News Collective – Fundraising 14 www.ink.uk.com To receive this issue of Get active 15 CAATnews in large print please call 020 7281 0297 PAKISTANI PARAMILITARY TROOPS PATROL A STREET IN 2MULTAN. ASIM TANVEER/REUTERS AUG/SEPT 2006 CAATnews CAMPAIGN UPDATE Shut DESO action day and lobby The next big events in The CAAT Shut CAAT’s Shut DESO campaign DESO launch in calendar are the Shut DESO March PATRICK DELANEY Action day and the three- month lobby of MPs On Monday 16th October we will encircle the headquarters of DESO, the department within the Ministry of Defence that is at the heart of the UK Government’s undemocratic and disproportionate support for arms exports. The building is also at the heart of the capital, on one of its busiest thoroughfares. This means our action will attract the attention of hundreds of passers-by as well as, business would not have been MP in person at the Houses of we hope, lots of media coverage, achieved without the assistance of Parliament, encouraging her or him which could reach millions. This is DESO.” That means that if DESO to call for the closure of DESO. one of the reasons why the day is so were shut, arms exports from the UK Alternatively, if you can’t make the important. At the moment, very few could be drastically reduced. action day on the 16th October, you people even know that DESO exists. Shutting DESO will take political can lobby your MP in your This bold action is designed to lift it will and a change in government constituency sometime between 1st out of obscurity and reveal the policy. This sometimes seems like a September and 30th November, as shocking truth about what it really far-off possibility. However, the part of our three-month lobby of does. Liberal Democrats have already MPs. We need at least 170 people to pledged that they would shut DESO To order your lobby pack, take part – and we need you to be if they got into government. In part, containing all the information you’ll one of them! Encircling the building their pledge was thanks to need for a meeting with your MP, we will designate DESO a ‘global campaigning by CAAT and please contact Ann at the office (see danger zone’ to highlight the fact supporters like you. Now we must page 12). that it is helping to proliferate arms pressure the other political parties to Be part of the campaign. Help us and fuel conflict across the world. Its do the same – to promise to shut Shut DESO! own official website boasts that DESO and stop pushing arms “Successive Customer Satisfaction around the world. For more info and to register your Surveys of the UK defence industry After the action in the morning place for the Shut DESO action day, revealed that over 75% of this there will be a chance to lobby your please contact Anna at the office. Shut DESO action day, Monday 16th October 11am: Rally and preparation for of them. If you can, please wear hundreds of people in a short space action. (Bloomsbury Central Baptist something white to symbolise unity of time about DESO. Church, 235 Shaftesbury Avenue, and peace. 3-6pm: Lobby your MP. Join London WC2). Hear the latest on the From 1.30pm: DESO poll: others to visit your MP at the Houses campaign to shut DESO and join Engaging the public. After being of Parliament, encouraging him or our preparations for the day ahead. part of our human chain, you can her to call for the closure of DESO. 12.30pm: Shut DESO mass further spread the message about This lobby will form part of our three action. (2-12 Bloomsbury Way, DESO by helping us conduct an month mass lobby. You’ll need to London WC1). Participate in informal street poll in Central book your meeting in advance – designating the headquarters of London. We will provide you with the contact the office for your lobby- DESO a “global danger zone”. We necessary support and materials for pack, containing all the info you’ll need 170 people to encircle the this. Together we will be able to tell need. building and we’d like you to be one CAATnews AUG/SEPT 2006 3 ARMS TRADE SHORTS Bush bans arms US shipped Small Arms to Venezuela Bosnian arms to warning at UN Iraq conference The US government has banned all arms sales to Venezuela, The Pentagon appears to have As the UN Small Arms Review claiming that the country hasn't co- arranged for more than 200,000 Conference met in New York in July, operated in the fight against Kalashnikov machine guns to be the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey terrorism and has harboured shipped from Bosnia to Iraq in 2004. warned that military modernisation Colombian guerrilla groups. The actual shipments were made by programmes expected over the next Venezuelan President Hugo various subcontractors working for decade could result in a glut of Chavez, a fervent critic of the Bush private military companies Taos and illegal small arms. The group has administration, has denied the CACI, but Amnesty International has expressed fears that the influx of new allegations and insisted that it is said that there is no evidence that the arms in developed countries could Venezuela that is under threat from weapons ever reached their intended result in older models being sold off the US. Only weeks after the ban destination: the new Iraqi security illicitly. Meanwhile at the conference, was announced, Russia agreed to forces. One of the subcontractors, Kofi Annan said that significant build rifle and munitions plants in Aerocom of Moldova, had already progress had been made on small Venezuela, “so that we can defend been stripped of its operating license arms since the last conference in every street, every hill, every by the Moldovan government due to 2001, but that there was still a long corner”, President Chavez said. “safety and security concerns” before way to go and that the UN's efforts The first shipment of 100,000 the shipments started. GUARDIAN, 12/5/06 remained focused on the spread of Kalashnikovs bought from Russia illegal weapons. Calls for an last year arrived in Venezuela in International Arms Trade Treaty made July. GUARDIAN, 16/5/06; DAILY TELEGRAPH, 1/6/06 UK companies by the Control Arms coalition were rejected by US Ambassador to the dominate Qatar UN, John Bolton. “We don't see any need for treaties or agreements BAE armoured Arms Fair coming out of this,” he said. AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, 26/6/06; BBC NEWS ONLINE, vehicles bought 40 UK arms companies, the largest 5/7/06 number from any single country, for Iraq exhibited at Milipol-Qatar in May. They were assisted by DESO, the Chinese arms The US Army has awarded BAE government's arms sales unit, as well Systems a $180 million contract for as a display team from the British exacerbate 378 Iraqi Light Armoured Vehicles. Army. The UK is one of Qatar's main The vehicles are scheduled for rapid providers of military equipment and conflict delivery and the deal “expands BAE training and plans to acquire 20% of Systems' commitment to protecting its gas from Qatar by 2012. Amnesty International has American and allied troops in Iraq” GULF TIMES, 16/5/06 condemned China's export of according to the company. BAE SYSTEMS conventional weapons and small PRESS RELEASE, 5/6/06 arms to countries such as Pakistan, Aegis Defence Myanmar, Nepal and Sudan as demonstrating a “dangerously Rolls-Royce looks clears itself permissive approach to licensing arms exports”.