March 7-8, 2013 | National Assembly of Namibia, Windhoek

Introduction

Hosted by the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee of the National Assembly of Namibia, Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) organized from 7-8 March 2013 in Windhoek, Namibia at the National Assembly of Namibia a Regional Parliamentary Workshop on “Addressing the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons and Supporting an Arms Trade Treaty – The Role of Parliamentarians”. 

The workshop brought together about 40 participants, mostly Members of Parliament from these African States: the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritania, Namibia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, and Uganda.  Other participants included Namibian Government Ministers, Ambassadors and Embassy Staff from the High Commission of the United Kingdom, the Embassies of Finland, Spain and Germany, representatives from the United Nations Development Program, and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), former Deputy Director of UNREC and an expert from the Institute for Security Studies.  A full list of the participants is below in Annex 1.

The purpose of the Workshop was to raise awareness surrounding the importance of the UN Program of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons in the region as well as promoting the establishment of a robust Arms Trade Treaty.

At the conclusion of the workshop, Members of Parliament adopted the Windhoek Plan of Action, which contains a number of practical steps that Members of Parliament participating at the Workshop can now take in their countries and parliaments to promote greater conformity with the UN Program of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons and support for an Arms Trade Treaty.  The Plan of Action can be found below in Annex 2. This Plan of Action will also be publicized at the United Nations in New York during the course of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) Conference to finalize negotiations on an ATT, taking place from 18-28 March, 2013.

The Workshop was made possible by a grant from the Federal Republic of Germany.   

The below report provides an overview of the presentations and discussions from the four panels as well as the technical/legal session.  The first and second day of the workshop focused on regulating small arms and light weapons and supporting the ATT.  As the second day was International Women’s Day, presenters were asked and incorporated an important gender component into their presentations. 

Day 1: Thursday, 7 March 2013

Opening Ceremony and Introductory Remarks
Following a rendition of the Namibian National Anthem, the Honorable Loide Kasingo, MP Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Namibia and His Excellency Mr. Onno Hückmann, Ambassador of Germany to Namibia, gave their special opening remarks.  These remarks were followed by the Honorable Evelyn Nawases-Taeyele, MP Chairperson, Standing Committee on Constitutional and Legal Affairs of the National Assembly of Namibia and the Honorable Lamine M. Thiam, MP (Senegal), Member of ECOWAS Parliament, Convenor of PGA’s International Peace and Security Program, who made some introductory remarks.

The Honorable Loide Kasingo, MP Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Namibia, extended a warm welcome to Namibia to all of the participants.  Noting the upcoming UN Conference to finalize negotiations on an ATT, she stated that Namibia is equally concerned about the impact of the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons and related ammunition, especially related to health, education, human rights, security, women, and children.  Poor regulation in the trade of conventional arms and related ammunition fuels conflicts in many parts of the world.    In connection with Article 96 of the Namibia Constitution, Namibia supports the establishment of an ATT as it will promote international peace and security.  For the treaty to be effective though, she said it must be global in its reach, legally binding, and comprehensive in scope and criteria.

Ambassador Onnu Hückmann started out by saying that Germany was proud to be able to support this Workshop, which looks at the important role of parliamentarians in the ATT process. He noted that Germany is co-sponsoring an additional African regional conference on the ATT in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia for delegates attending negotiations in New York.  The Ambassador highlighted a new Germany strategy that recognizes developing countries influential role in shaping international policy, and Germany hopes to develop innovative policies with these countries to address global issues such as economic and financial policy, climate change and energy security, sustainable development, and international peace and security, particularly the arms trade. 

Related to the arms trade, Ambassador Hückmann stated that a treaty to regulate the international arms trade, which is universally agreed and effectively implemented, can help prevent armed conflict as well as curb transnational organized crime and terrorism. An ATT will only provide added value, however, if it requires countries to examine the pros and cons of potential arms transfers on the basis of clear and ambitious criteria with the highest possible common standards.  The treaty must also be comprehensive in scope and participation and impose clear obligations on both exporters and importers of arms.  Lastly, Germany stands ready to assist States in implementing the treaty, which is why they have already pledged 500,000 Euros to a newly established UNODA “Multi-donor Support Facility for the Arms Trade Treaty and UN Program of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons”.

Starting the introductory remarks, the Honorable Evelyn Nawases-Taeyele, MP Chairperson, Standing Committee on Constitutional and Legal Affairs of the National Assembly of Namibia, welcomed everyone to the National Assembly of Namibia.  She stated that the Republic of Namibia cannot remain aloof while the world is facing untold suffering from the proliferation and illicit use of small arms and light weapons.  This is why Namibia has been an active participant of regional and global efforts to address the illicit trade in small arms.  On 8 October 2004, Namibia deposited its instruments of ratification on the SADC Protocol.  Namibia continues to participate in the UN Program of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons, including by regularly submitting national reports.   On 14 April 2005, Namibia created a national focal point on small arms and light weapons.  As part of their national action plan on small arms, they are working to establish a verifiable database on all legal firearms.

The Honorable Lamine M. Thiam, MP (Senegal), Member of ECOWAS Parliament, Convenor of PGA’s International Peace and Security Program, followed by providing his sincere thanks to the National Assembly of Namibia for hosting this Workshop on behalf of PGA.  As advocates and lawmakers, Members of Parliament have an essential role to play in addressing the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons.  PGA Members of Parliament have been active in promoting domestic firearms legislation, facilitating the process of ratification of regional conventions, enhancing conformity of their national legislation with the UN Program of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons as well as advocating strongly for the ATT in many countries around the world.  Over 2,100 Members of Parliament from 114 countries, for instance, have signed the Control Arms Global Parliamentary Declaration on the Arms Trade Treaty, emphasizing their commitment to an ATT. 

Mr. Thiam said he looked forward to developing the Plan of Action during the Workshop, highlighting that the Plan of Action is only useful if it is implemented.  In the Plan of Action that we adopt here, we must therefore make sure that we highlight what we, as parliamentarians, believe is essential be included in this Treaty. To help promote this Plan of Action and support a strong ATT, I along with four other Members of Parliament will attend the UN Conference on the ATT in New York.  During the UN Conference, we will also hold a press conference about the Plan.

Panel 1: Regulating Small Arms and Light Weapons and Supporting the Arms Trade Treaty:  African Parliamentary Perspectives

Moderated by the Honorable Ignatius Shixwameni, MP Namibia, the first panel included three speakers:  the Honorable Thomas P. Fallah, MP Liberia; the Honorable Jones Vincent Chingola, MP Malawi; and, the Honorable Velaphi Ndlovu, MP South Africa.  After providing a short summary of their presentations, the report will highlight some of the main points raised during the discussion period.

In his presentation, the Honorable Thomas P. Fallah welcomed PGA’s involvement in the issue of the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons.  Speaking powerfully about the Liberian civil wars, he said arms played a significant role in the wide scale damage and violence.  Grave human rights violations and abusers were committed with arms, and children suffered immensely.  History has shown that many countries can come out of conflict to be prosperous.  Rehabilitation of government policies is important.  As part of these reforms, Liberia has been working on new policies and laws related to the illicit trade and use of small arms and light weapons.  Liberia has endorsed the ECOWAS Convention and supports the ATT process.  Mr. Fallah also mentioned that women play an important role in curbing problems related to arms, and they should be involved in such efforts.

The Honorable Jones Vincent from Malawi also described some of the ways in which guns were being used for armed violence in Malawi.  He indicated that armed violence, including carjacking, has been a significant problem in the last few years.  Malawian Police have been struggling to contain the situation.  The victims are men, women, and children and even Police.  Many arms are coming into Malawi from Mozambique through border roads.  Some of the traffickers just walk across the border with firearms hidden in their jackets.  It appears some of the arms come from the previous conflict in Mozambique.

The Honorable Velaphi Ndlovo from South Africa echoed concerns about crime from small arms.  He indicated that firearms are being used to a great extent to bring death in the streets and communities of South Africa.  The types of crime range from high-jacking to assassinations.  Mr. Ndlovo said the illicit trade in firearms is a huge problem in South Africa; it is estimated that the number of illicitly held small arms in South Africa is between 500,000 and 4 million.  The supply of arms in South Africa is so high that an AK-47 costs about 1,600 Rand ($200 USD).  However, it’s not just a problem of illicit firearms.  The legal trade in firearms is also making it easy for firearms to get into the hands of criminals.  The South African Firearms Control Act is not being fully implemented as it is being challenged in certain aspects.  South Africa does support the creation of an ATT.  Mr. Ndlovo indicated that too often developed countries have transferred their arms to Africa without thinking about the full potential consequences.  He hoped that the ATT would provide the opportunity to take action against countries that cross the line in their arms transfers.

Following the presentations, a couple of the participants stated it’s important to raise awareness about the problem of the illicit trade in small arms with constituents and mobilize other groups such as churches, civil society, and private industry to address the problem.

Several participants also highlighted the problem of having adequate resources to effectively address the challenges.  In Namibia, for instance, they have purchased scanners to review shipments coming into Namibia by sea.  However, they only have enough funds to keep the scanners running for six hours.  As a result, the traffickers wait until the scanners are turned off and then go through customs.  Namibia also doesn’t have the capacity to cover the roads.

Panel 2: Regulating Small Arms and Light Weapons and Supporting the Arms Trade Treaty:  African Parliamentary Perspectives (continued)

Moderated by the Honorable Festus Ueitele, MP Namibia, the second panel included three speakers:  the Honorable Alban Bagbin, MP Ghana; the Honorable Jonas Sibanyoni, MP South Africa; and, the Honorable Aboubakar Ba-Traore, MP Togo.  After providing a short summary of their presentations, the report will highlight some of the main points raised during the discussion period.

Focusing more on the upcoming negotiations for an ATT, the Honorable Alban Bagbin from Ghana stated that African Members of Parliament need to find ways to keep the discussion about the illicit arms trade on the front burner in African countries.  As many African countries struggle with consolidating democracies, many people still feel vulnerable.  Owning arms helps them feel better.  Mr. Bagbin stated that Parliamentarians need to get their constituents fired-up about the issue and encourage their governments to better address the problems. Consensus building needs to be improved upon.  Women play a very important role in figuring out how to deal with the illicit trade and use of small arms.

In his opening comments, the Honorable Jonas Sibanyoni from South Africa said he was pleased that his colleague the Honorable Ndlovu was able to participate in this Workshop.  Although Mr. Sibanyoni and Mr. Ndlovu are from different parties in the South African Parliament, their views are more alike when it comes to addressing the illicit trade in arms.  Mr. Sibanyoni said he believes one must take a holistic approach to solving the problem of the illicit arms trade, focusing on both the licit and illicit trade in small arms.  A regional approach is also needed.  South Africa recently adopted new legislation to combat the illicit trade in small arms.  In South Africa, they have strict regulations on the import, export, and manufacturing of arms as well as a strict enforcement policy.  As part of its laws, South Africa also provides for consequences for the negligent use of firearms.  If, for instance, one loses the firearm, one may no longer be able to purchase a new firearm.  South Africa is also working to create a sub-regional register on firearms and is actively supporting the SADC Protocol. 

The Honorable Aboubakar Ba-Traore from Togo covered both Togo’s recent action to combat the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons and Togo’s position on the ATT.  Related to Togo’s efforts on small arms, Mr. Ba-Traore highlighted the various sub-regional agreements Togo has supported, including the ECOWAS Convention on small arms, and the creation of a National Commission on small arms and a national plan of action to combat the illicit proliferation of small arms.  In the last few years, the National Commission has sensitized the public about the dangers of small arms, supported the destruction of small arms, and provided training to the military and the police on stockpile management as well as journalists about questions related to small arms proliferation.  Recently, the National Commission has also helped start the marking of all firearms held by the Togolese government.  The Togolese government supports a strong and comprehensive ATT.  As such, he said the treaty should cover all types of arms, including small arms and light weapons and related ammunition, technology used for manufacturing arms, and dual-use weapons.  The treaty should also cover transactions such as transshipment, rexport, and gifts.  In addition, there should be measures to reinforce government capabilities to combat the illicit trade in arms.  

Technical/Legal Session – Drafting Windhoek Declaration

The third panel was moderated by the Honorable Alban Bagbin, MP Ghana.  The two speakers were Peter Barcroft, Director of Projects PGA, and Colby Goodman, former Deputy Director of the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa (UNREC), part of the UN Office of Disarmament Affairs.

After giving an overview of PGA’s recent activities related to combating small arms and light weapons and the ATT, Mr. Barcroft provided some suggestions on what Parliamentarians could do to address the illicit trade in arms.  In particular, he indicated that Parliamentarians could sign the Control Arms Global Parliamentary Declaration on the ATT and participate in sub-regional Parliamentary groups to combat the problem.  Mr. Barcroft also read a statement from His Excellency Ambassador Peter Woolcott, the President-Designate for the upcoming UN Conference on the ATT.  In his statement, Ambassador Woolcott said he was encouraged by the fact that Parliamentarians were fully engaged in the ATT process.  As legislators, he said, “you can play a crucial role in the coming days by advocating the adoption of a meaningful ATT. You will also be called to play a major role after the adoption of the Arms Trade Treaty. For you will be entrusted, in your respective countries, with the ratification of this important treaty and for putting in place the legislative measures that will be required for its implementation.”

In his presentation, Mr. Colby Goodman, former Deputy Director of UNREC, provided further details on the range of actions Parliamentarians could undertake to combat the illicit trade in arms.  Outside of passing laws related to the trade in arms, Members of Parliament have a strong role to play in providing oversight of the government’s arms control efforts from both an economic, development, and national security standpoint.  These can include asking for periodic reporting on one or more of these items: 1) all exports and imports of conventional arms; 2) national manufacturing; 3) management of civilian firearm possession, including total number of firearms registered, number of violations, government staff working on the issue, and challenges; 4) border control management; 5) firearm seizures; and, 6) pre-notification to Parliament about certain types or levels of arms imports or exports.  Mr. Goodman also said that Members of Parliament can have a strong, positive influence on the government by passing resolutions (encouragements), writing co-sign letters, and speaking publicly urging the government to support certain aspects of treaty negotiations such as the ATT or better address certain aspects of a particular small arms problem.

During the discussion period, a couple Members of Parliament highlighted the challenge opposition party Parliamentarians have in making a positive impact on government policies.  In response, Parliamentarians said it’s important for opposition party Members of Parliament to be very vocal about their position.  It needs to be known what types of arms are being imported, who’s producing them, and what they will be used for.  A suggestion was also made about including women and other members of the government in African delegations to the UN Conference on the ATT.

Day 2: Friday, 8 March 2013 – International Women’s Day

Panel 3:  Regulating Small Arms and Light Weapons and Supporting the ATT:  The Gender Dimension

Moderated by the Honorable Evelyn Nawases-Taeyele, MP Namibia, there were three speakers for the third panel discussion:  the Honorable Marie Thérèse Basiala Maka, MP Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC); the Honorable Aminetou mint Maouloud, MP Mauritania; and, the Honorable Veronica Sesay, MP Sierra Leone.

Providing an overview of the challenges related to arms and violence against women in the DRC, the Honorable Marie Thérèse Basiala Maka indicated that there have been more than six million deaths during the DRC conflict.  The serious human rights violations and abuses have been committed by rebels, militias, and the military.  Most of these crimes are committed with arms, which they obtain from traffickers and neighboring countries.  In response to the arms problem, the DRC government has taken several steps.  They have supported sub-regional and global agreements aimed at tackling the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons.  The government has also established a national commission and national plan of action on small arms.  In collaboration with the international community, there have been efforts to collect arms from the fighting forces.  In 2007, they also created border police and restructured the customs services. 

Despite the UN arms embargo on DRC, however, arms continue to come into DRC and are being used by rebels, militias, refugees, and the military against women and girls.  The violence takes many forms, including: rape; abduction; sexual slavery; forced prostitution, abortion, and sterilization; mutilation of sexual organs; trafficked; and, inappropriate medical exams.  It is estimated that 400,000 women are violated per year in DRC.  In response to violence against women and girls, the government has amended their constitution to specifically prohibit all forms of violence towards women.  The government also modified a law in 2006 that increases punishment for perpetrators of sexual violence.  There continues to be widespread impunity for many crimes in DRC though.  To help remedy these problems, Ms. Basiala Maka recommends that the justice sector provide better protection for female victims, including medical and psychological assistance, and prioritize cases against sexual violence offenders.  More diligent efforts are also need to disarm rebels, militias, and refugees.   

The Honorable Aminetou mint Maouloud from Mauritania said Mauritania is much more aware and concerned about the illicit trade in arms now than before.  In 2006, armed violence was significant.  More recently, the killing of Spanish tourists caused great concern.  As a result, the government has been much more vigilant in addressing the illicit trade in arms.

Opening her presentation with a song, the Honorable Veronica Sesay from Sierra Leone described the strong role the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons played in the past armed conflict in Sierra Leone.  As Sierra Leone does not manufacture arms, there was a flood of arms into the country during the war.  Particularly troubling was the fact that small children were carrying guns and using them to intimidate their parents.  Although the war was over in 2002, arms are still easily available in the country.  Many women and children were left out of the disarmament process.  Government efforts to curb the illicit arms trade have been frustrated and hindered by the very people who should be supporting the effort.  In order to fortify the borders and stop the illicit trade, the government needs to reform the security forces and transform organized criminals.  Sierra Leone has developed legislation in 2012 entitled the Arms and Ammunition Act aimed to combat this problem.  It includes makes provision for licensing ammunition, background checks, safe storage requirements, and training and protection for women.

Panel 4:  Regulating Small Arms and Light Weapons and Supporting the ATT:  The Gender Dimension

The second panel on small arms and gender included three speakers:  the Honorable Alaso Alice Asianut, MP Uganda; the Honorable Oleru Hudu, MP Uganda; and Ms. Lauren Tracey, Institute for Security Studies (ISS) based in South Africa.

Both the Honorable Alaso Alice Asianut and the Honorable Oleru Hudu spoke about the Ugandan conflict and actions the Ugandan government has taken to address the proliferation and misuse of small arms and light weapons.  From the northern part of Uganda, Ms. Hudu gave some examples of the challenges women faced during fighting in northern Uganda.  For instance, women in the north were often beaten or mutilated if they did not provide information to security forces on the whereabouts of their husbands.  At the night, the same women would be beaten by their husbands that returned from the forest for potentially talking to the security forces.  Both Members of Parliament from Uganda spoke about the problems of the illicit use and trade in arms.  Ms. Hudu said Uganda supports the ATT effort.  It was her hope that an ATT would help better secure Uganda’s porous borders.  She also stated that women should be part of the effort to negotiate the ATT. 

Uganda has taken a number of steps to combat the illicit trade and use of small arms and light weapons in the last year.  Recently, Ms. Asianut indicated that the Ugandan Parliament is looking at improving the national law to better deal with weapons given to civic defense forces, among other items.  Uganda also has a national focal point and national plan of action on small arms.  Through this focal point, Uganda has been marking its weapons to improve their traceability, built the capacity of security forces, including related to investigations.  The government has also collected and destroyed small arms and improved its stockpile management of arms.

After providing a short overview of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) work related to arms control in Africa, Ms. Lauren Tracey said large numbers of illicit small arms have remained in circulation in southern Africa from past conflicts.  As a result of the easy availability of small arms, armed violence is much more prevalent and is harming development efforts. Over the last decade, several governments began to devise national responses to address small arms. However, they soon realized that in order to effectively control the illegal proliferation and misuse of SALW in southern Africa they would need to adopt a sub-regional approach.  On 8 November 2004, the SADC Firearms Protocol entered into force; eleven States have ratified it.  In an attempt to assist countries in the implementation of key elements of the Protocol, a Regional Coordinating Committee (RCC) on small arms was established in 2007 at a recent Southern African Regional Police Chiefs Co-operation Organization meeting.  The RCC is made up of National Focal Point (NFP) coordinators from Southern Africa that meet twice a year to assist member states in the implementation of the legal requirements of the SADC Firearms Protocol.

In South Africa, violence against women and children is a significant challenge.  In many cases related to domestic violence and homicides of women and children, firearms were identified as the most common weapon used.  South Africa also has the highest reported rate globally of females murdered by shooting in a country not engaged in war, and where men use guns to intimidate and assault women. In South Africa, the Domestic Violence Act, 1998 and the Firearms Control Act 2000 give women and children all over South Africa a chance to be protected, and has contributed to a substantial decrease in the number of registered firearms and firearms related deaths.

South Africa is one of the only African countries with specific conventional arms control policy and legislation, and has a dedicated conventional arms control co-ordination entity. The National Conventional Arms Control Act was entered into law in 2002 and was amended in 2009. The National Conventional Arms Control Committee is comprised of cabinet ministers and oversees the transfer of arms into and out of South Africa. The committee is required by law to submit annual arms export reports to the national legislature.

Regarding the ATT, Ms. Tracey said “it is imperative that African states continue to advocate for a treaty that covers a broad range of weapons, including small arms and light weapons, and importantly ammunition.”  While some states may believe that the administrative burden of regulating ammunition may be too excessive, South Africa believes that the death, injury and suffering caused by ammunitions, particularly to civilians in armed conflict, and the use of illicit small arms and light weapons by far outweigh such administrative concerns.”  She said a majority of African States support this position, and African States need to continue to resist pressure to weaken the treaty and hold firm for a robust ATT in March 2013.  She also gave all participants two ISS publications:  1) ATT Negotiation Toolkit for African States; and 2) Implementation of the United Nations Program of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons (UNPoA) in sub- Saharan Africa.

Discussion, Review and Adoption of the Windhoek Plan of Action

Prior to the discussion, five Members of Parliament along with a couple PGA staff prepared a discussion draft of the Plan of Action based on comments expressed during the Workshop.  This draft Plan of Action was presented to all of the participating Members of Parliament.  During the discussion on the draft, several items were amended.  Members of Parliament also agreed to add two new items.  Below in Annex 2, please find the agreed Windhoek Plan of Action. 

For further information on this Regional Parliamentary Workshop, please contact Mr. Peter Barcroft, Director of Projects, PGA at peter.barcroft@pgaction.org