DYB2011-Part-II-web

United Nations Disarmament Yearbook 2011: Part II
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Guatemala, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago. By taking ownership of such
practical disarmament initiatives, the States were better equipped to prevent
the diversion of weapons.
Nearly 500 security sector personnel from the countries in the region
benefited from the UNLIREC Inter-institutional Training Course on
Combating Illicit Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition and Explosives. As
a direct result, there was an increase in the number of successful seizures
of ammunition and firearms, most notably in the Andean region. Central
American and Caribbean States, for their part, incorporated the UNLIREC
standardized training methodology into existing police academy training
curricula.
Recognizing the importance of a robust regional approach to addressing
the threat posed by illicit firearms, UNLIREC completed comparative legal
firearms studies for Central, South American and Caribbean countries and
expanded its legal assistance to include specialized training for judicial
officers in combating impunity in cases of illicit firearms trafficking.
UNLIREC also increased its support to States in the region in drafting new
legislation and assisting national commissions in defining and implementing
priorities that were subsequently reflected in their national action plans.
UNLIREC actively supported States in their preparations for the global
negotiations in 2012 on an ATT and also in their deliberations in the lead-up
to the Seventh Review Conference of the Biological Weapons Convention. 22
UNLIREC responded to more than 25 official requests for assistance from
Member States. The increase in the number of requests further strengthened
and expanded its roster of public security and firearms experts. The Centre’s
activities in the area of public security in the Andean, Caribbean and Central
American subregions benefited from its continuing partnership with the
Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, the Spanish
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, the Swedish International
Development Cooperation Agency and the United States Department of
State. For the second consecutive year, UNLIREC was subcontracted by its
regional partner, the Organization of American States, to deliver technical
legal assistance to member States. Financial and in-kind contributions made to
UNLIREC by States in the region also increased for the first time in the past
five years, highlighting the growing value of the partnership between States
and the Centre in support of disarmament and non-proliferation goals.
22 The full title is the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and
Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction.
The treaty text and status of adherence are available from http://disarmament.un.org/
treaties.