MISSING PIECES - Inter-Parliamentary Union

THEME 2
rupt government officials, arms brokers, and transport agents, operate
with near-total impunity. National authorities often fail to implement
UN sanctions into national legislation, so any violation becomes nearly
impossible to prosecute, especially where gun control and justice systems
are weak. Parliamentarians can call for clarification of existing law or
policies and work to close any loopholes.
“The 114 th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union . . . urges parliaments
to make violations of arms embargoes a criminal offence under
national law; and, in the event of breaches of arms embargoes, to
trigger the specific action prescribed for each particular embargo.”
—IPU resolution, 114th Assembly, 12 May 2006 , para. 16
Another problem is that UN investigative panels have always been ad
hoc, time bound, and assigned to look at individual embargoes. This arrangement
means that there are gaps in monitoring, institutional memory is lost
as panels expire, opportunities for a more comprehensive analysis across
several embargoed countries are missed, and follow-up does not happen.
One solution to these problems would be for the UN to establish a permanent
sanctions unit to receive and analyse reports of violations and
ensure critical follow-up, complemented by experts who would conduct
investigations as needed.
BOX 7 BREAKING THE DEADLOCK: GUNS AND ARMED GROUPS
Taking into account that non-state armed groups are so often responsible
for systematic human rights abuses against civilians, the Canadian government
in 1999 proposed the development of a global convention to limit small
arms transfers to such groups. 22 Years later, the issue is still the subject of
debate. After much disagreement, the 2001 UN Conference failed to reach
a consensus on how to address the issue. As a result, the PoA does not
contain any guidelines on this important question, and a deadlock emerged,
preventing constructive efforts to contain the vast destruction arising from
armed violence by various armed groups.
Despite a precedent from the EU to outlaw the sale of military-style small
arms to armed groups, this approach does not appear promising at the
global level. 23 Instead, the persistent opposition of some states to a blanket
ban on arms transfers to non-state groups obliges the international community
to explore other avenues to address the wide array of problems raised
by the misuse of weapons by such groups. Possible responses extend beyond
traditional supply-side measures to take into consideration the factors
driving the demand and misuse of weapons by armed groups. (See Annex 5
for relevant instruments of international law)
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