The following is a compilation of side events covered by
the Small Arms Monitor during the Third Biennial Meeting of
States on Small Arms, 14-18 July 2008:
Small Arms Survey Ray Acheson, The Small Arms Survey, a project of the Graduate
Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva,
launched its 2008 edition at the conference today. The book,
"Risk and Resilience," examines the problem of diversion
of small arms in relation to stockpiles, surplus disposal,
international transfers, and end-user documentation. It also
analyzes the public health approach to armed violence, noting
that "the public health approach views armed violence
as a phenomenon with identifiable patterns within particular
populations," which makes it "able to focus on small
groups and to design targeted interventions at the local level."
A SIPRI study on submission of information on SALW to
the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms Michael Spies,
In an lunchtime event, SIPRI presented the results of an assessment
of state reporting to the UN Register of Conventional Arms
in the period between 2003 and 2006. The presentation focused
on issues related to reporting on SALW since its introduction
as a “virtual category” and the merits of its
formal introduction as an eighth category. SIPRI also described
a new 12-month Counter-Illicit Trafficking Mechanism Assessment
Project, intended to assess the global movement of SALW toward
the purpose of facilitating the possible developing of information
sharing and control mechanisms.
Conflict of Interest: Children and Guns in Zones of Instability Valerie Haentjens, Reaching
Critical Will
The Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General
for Children and Armed Conflict, which is part of the United
Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs, held a panel discussion
about the topic “Conflict of Interest: Children and
Guns in Zones of Instability.” Belgium organized the
meeting in order to raise awareness of the devastating effects
of small arms on children. UNIDIR introduced its research
on different aid projects and the reintegration process. A
former child soldier explained his story and showed a trailer
of a video about his case, which can be watched on www.youtube.com
under the headline “War Child Trailer-Emmanuel Jal’s
Story.”
International Small Arms Control Standards Ginny Schneider,
Representatives from gave a brief
overview of implementation tools they are developing. This
week, they kicked off ,
which is a one-stop shop on the PoA. The PoA-ISS provides
an online small arms network for all PoA stakeholders, country
profiles, and information on national legislation.UNIDIR is
also designing a web-based program to match country needs
with resources available from donor countries. It allows
countries to enter data on the assistance they require and
donor states to enter the assistance they provide. It
is due out in a couple of months and will be accessible through
CASA's website. Patrick McCarthy of the is the new coordinator of the International Small
Arms Control Standards (ISACS), which is similar in form to
the . ISACS will be developed in modules, which
will be released as they are completed. There is a consultation
process associated with ISACS, which will reflect best practices
and lessons learned. The hope is to complete ISACS by
the 2010. In addition, UNDP issued two reports: one on SALW
legislation and the other on national commissions. UNODC is
working on model regulations.
