News, Press releases, Resources - Microdisarmament

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WCC Press releases, updates, feature stories: Disappointed at small arms agreement, WCC also sees hope for a stronger platform for common action Wait for the homework, Mozambican bishop tells NGOs Oral intervention on reduction of demand for small arms and the role of faith communities Churches use story, symbol and dance to protest the use of and trade in small arms Devastating human costs of small arms and light weapons: WCC team at UN small arms prepcom Churches prepare for UN conference on Illicit Trade in Small Arms Efforts to overcome armed violence and control small arms possession and sales gather momentum WCC supports micro disarmament initiatives World Council of Churches among the founding members of the International Network on Small Arms WCC calls for the dismantling of nuclear weapons 24 July 2001 Disappointed at small arms agreement, WCC also sees hope for a stronger platform for common action On-line resources Links to important sites Stories of hope from around the world Comprehensive intro to the issues WCC Peacebuilding & Disarmament Peace to the City Resources

"A not unexpected, but still very disappointing end," said Ernie Regehr, head of the World Council of Churches' (WCC) delegation to the United Nations (UN) conference on small arms, of the conference's failure to commit to stricter local and international controls on the manufacture, sale, possession and transfer of small arms. "In the end, the interests of the international gun lobby prevailed," he said, adding, "but we should not let that keep us from recognizing the important advances that were made." Regehr is director of Project Ploughshares in Canada and a member of the WCC Commission of the Churches on International Affairs (CCIA). After two weeks of extremely difficult negotiations that ended Saturday, 21 July, governments at the UN Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects reached a consensus on the world's first programme of action to prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms. Delegates dropped the two most controversial paragraphs, one that referred to domestic regulations and another that would have committed governments to sell small arms only to other governments. In both cases, Regehr, said, the United States was the primary obstacle. "The US refused to allow any reference in the final document that could be interpreted as encouraging stricter domestic gun laws. It's a startling omission." In noting the US argument that preventing sales to non-state actors would limit the options available to the president in certain circumstances, he stated "It is especially disturbing that states vulnerable to insurgent groups and the destabilization tactics of foreign powers were rebuffed as they tried to advance an international principle against foreign governments arming rebel groups." Click here to read more Related topics:

Small Arms Control: Resources for Action by Joel Streicker and Philip Alpers is available by post. Send us an email and we'll send you a copy!

If you or your church are interested in joining an Ecumenical Network against Small Arms, let us know at WCC Contact.

Let us know what your church is doing! WCC Peacebuilding & Disarmament Programme PO Box 2100 1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland WCC Contact

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News, Press releases, Resources - Microdisarmament

http://www.wcc-coe.org/wcc/what/international/action.html

Adding the voice of the churches to the UN Conference 'We do mind the dying' - press statement from the newly launched Humanitarian Coalition. Policy Framework and Guidelines on Small Arms and Light Weapons addopted by WCC/CCIA

Return to WCC participation at the UN Conference Return to Microdisarmament home page

2001 world council of churches | remarks to webeditor

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