arms trade

Humanitarian Disarmament for Sustainable Peace, Human Security & Development in India & United Nations Arms Trade Treaty Experts Meeting Conference 14 to 17 February 2010

Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) and The Corner House were shocked and angered by the decision of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) to settle with BAE Systems. As a result of the settlement there will be no opportunity to discover the truth behind alleged bribery and corruption in the many BAE deals that were under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office.

November 9, 2009

OIP, the Belgian company producing night vision goggles and aimpoints, received unexpected visitors from the Transnational Awareness Group. TAG inspectors entered the company's premises to verify information about complicity to warcrimes. They were specifically concerned about arms sales to controversial countries like Colombia and Israel.

On 7th February 2010, 8 peace activists entered the Brussels Holiday Fair and impersonated flight attendants of the Israeli airline company El Al. They handed out fake free plane tickets to Israel, which referred to the fact that El Al contributes to the transport of arms to the country. Their theatrical intervention didn't go down well with the Israeli security agents who were observing the Fair.

Between the 22 -25 of January 2010, WRI held its international conference in Ahmedabad, India. One of the main topics of the conference was the issue of war profiteering, with a special relation to its impact to the livelihoods of local communities. Here we report on some of the workshops on this topic.

Transnational campaigning against war profiteering – making links with the arms trade movement (ENAAT) and the local communities

Facilitator: Wendela de Vries

The apartheid government relied heavily on conscription to perpetuate its power in the region as well as to suppress the majority of South Africans.

Conscientious objection increased in the 1980s and found popular support in the End Conscription Campaign. The ever-increasing number of young white men refusing to serve in the apartheid army or just not turning up for duty, was a contributing factor to demise of the apartheid state. In 1993, with the first democratic election in sight, the ECC disbanded.

Gull Allmond & Mark Chapman

The arms manufacturers Raytheon are to end their computer software manufacturing operation in Derry, Northern Ireland, following a concerted campaign by Derry Anti War Coalition (DAWC) and the Foyle Ethical Investment Campaign (FEIC).

Elbit Systems is one of the world's largest defence electronics manufacturers and integrators. Established in 1967, and based in Haifa, Israel, Elbit employs 11,000 people worldwide. It supplies the military, navy and air force in the occupation of Palestine, and has profited greatly from Israel's numerous attacks and assaults on the Palestinian and Lebanese people.

On November 29, 2009, the Swiss people had the opportunity to vote to stop the export of arms. 31.8 % of the electorate decided to say yes to our proposition to ban all arms exports. This result is what we expected during the last months, but it’s less than what we hoped for after the latest polls.

Switzerland will vote on a constitutional amendment to ban all exports of arms on November 29. The Swiss electorate still hovers between its ideal of peaceful neutrality and the economic interests of the military industry.

Each fall, in early October, the Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space holds Keep Space for Peace Week. The purpose of the event is to increase global consciousness about the need to prevent the arms race from moving into space.

Arkadi Gaydamak, a Russian-born Israeli businessman and Pierre Falcone, his French associate, have been sentenced to six-year jail terms for organising the illegal trafficking of weapons to Angola.
Gaydamak, who fled France before the trial, and Falcone were among 42 politicians, businessmen and members of the Paris elite accused of defying a UN embargo to arm the Angolan government during a civil war in the 1990s.
Charles Pasqua, France's former interior minister, was handed a one-year jail term for his involvement in the case dubbed "Angola-gate".