Many people
believe that the world would be a more peaceful place if there
were fewer weapons. For this reason, an important component of
even the earliest peace movements was to advocate for disarmament
-- convincing nations to keep only the weapons they need for an
adequate police force.
Of course
weapons are only a tool for the expression of violence in our
world -- there have always been conflicts and wars. But in the
past, most of the victims of wars were the soldiers that nations
sent to fight each other. Today, most victims of weapons are innocent
civilians, and modern weapons have the potential to kill massive
numbers of people at one time.
"Peace
through Disarmament" is a major focus for the United
Nations. This excerpt from the Department for Disarmament Affairs'
vision statement sums up this avenue of the UN's work: "We
acknowledge that disarmament alone will not produce world peace.
Yet we also maintain that the elimination of weapons of mass destruction,
illicit arms trafficking, and burgeoning weapons stockpiles would
advance both peace and development goals. It would accomplish
this by reducing the effects of wars, eliminating some key incentives
to new conflicts, and liberating resources to improve the lives
of all the peoples of the United Nations and the natural environment
in which they live."
The United
Nations has made some progress towards disarmament, with treaties
and conventions that create guidelines and international laws
about weapons production and exportation to other countries. But
the UN can only do what nations allow it to do, and unfortunately,
the profits many nations make from exporting weapons has slowed
progress in disarmament over the years.
Disarmament
efforts focus on two basic types of weapons -- weapons of mass
destruction, including nuclear, biological and chemical weapons,
and small arms. Much attention has naturally been spent
on working to halt the nuclear arms race because of the devastating
amount of damage that these weapons can do. Progress has been
made, but there are still more than 30,000-50,000 nuclear warheads
- enough to destroy the entire planet many times over. In addition,
after the end of the Cold War in which people feared the superpowers
could destroy each other, new fears about the use of these weapons
by terrorists or rogue nations has, in some minds, given us even
more reason to fear these weapons.
WMDs may get
much of the public attention, but small arms disarmament is also
an important, although controversial issue, for many as well.
There are more than 600 million guns in the world! 1 million people
are injured by guns each year, and 300,000 people are killed using
guns. 200,000 are homicides; 60,000 to 90,000 are killed in conflict
areas (with the majority being civilians) and 50,000 people kill
themselves with guns each year. Most of the major countries export
arms around the world. Although some countries have strict laws
regarding exporting small arms, the global trade in arms is not
well regulated, so that many legally exported guns end up on the
black market, and end up in the wrong hands.
Gun control
is a very controversial issue in the US, with strong advocates
on both sides of the debate. Advocates of gun control argue that
American communities and the world at large would be safer if
there were strict laws regulating the sale and use of guns, while
those arguing for gun rights believe that it is a fundamental
right for citizens to be able to protect themselves. Because the
United States is one of the biggest exporters of small arms, it
is in many ways the battlefield over the question of small arms
disarmament.
Disarmament
Week (which begins on October 24 -- the anniversary of the UN's
founding) is an important occasion to raise awareness in the public
and among governments, about the crucial need to recognize disarmament
as a key element in creating a more peaceful, just and sustainable
world.
