Small Arms and Light Weapons - Harry Frank Guggenheim ...

Effects of Small Arms MisuseWilliam Godnick, Edward J. Laurance, Rachel Stohl, and Small Arms SurveyIntroductionIn 1994 the impoverished nation of Mali waswracked with violence. Small arms and lightweapons had become readily available, turninggrievances by the economically marginalizedToureg into armed violence so pervasive that alldevelopment work in Mali had come to a halt.Donor countries pulled out, and the scuttling oftheir development projects resulted in half-builtschools, contaminated water supplies, and unfinishedroads. The president of Mali formally askedthe United Nations to assist his country in tacklinga problem heretofore unaddressed in internationalaffairs, the proliferation and misuse of small armsand light weapons.When the global community first engaged theissue of small arms and light weapons (SALW) inthe 1990s, it was the terrible effects of theseweapons in places such as Mali that were the primemover for research and action. Documenting theseeffects was a crucial first step toward developingpolicies to address the problem, since most of theweapons involved initially had a legitimate role inthe internal and external security of sovereignstates, yet governments were understandably reluctantto formally recognize that there were unintendedeffects from these weapons. The result wasa set of papers, produced mainly by the policy andadvocate communities, intended to demonstratethe need to focus on the instruments of violence.Most of these initial reports were stories or anecdotesgathered by NGOs with firsthand experienceof the effects of small arms. 1Once the policy and advocacy materials definedthe problem, it was natural that more in-depthresearch would soon follow. Understanding thesocietal and individual effects of small arms is themotivation for this research: we want to knowwhat harm small arms cause, who is most affectedby them, and the circumstances under which theseweapons cause harm.Direct Effectsdeaths, injuries, and disabilitiesDirect effects of small arms occur as deaths,injuries, and disabilities, as well as direct costs thatresult from the treatment of injuries and disabilities.In addition, there are the costs to society oflost working days resulting from treatment, prematuredeath, or disability.Studies in the United States in particular, and toa lesser extent in other Western societies, have providedan understanding of the significance offirearms in suicide and homicide rates by comparingfirearms with other means of killing.Suicides by firearm: It has been documented formany Western societies that the availability of civilianfirearms influences the percentage of suicidescommitted with a firearm. This is partly explainedby the higher suicide completion rates for suicidesthat are attempted with a gun as compared toattempted suicides that make use of other means.Completed suicide rates appear to be higher forgroups that are more prone to impulsive actions,such as youths, when they have easy access to afirearm. However, it remains debatable whetheroverall suicide rates increase as a result of elevatedarms availability. Nor is great firearms prevalencenecessary for a high suicide rate. Japan suffersfrom very high suicide rates but has one of the lowestrates of civilian arms availability in the world.Domestic firearm deaths: In the US there is evi-10