UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY: FIRST COMMITTEE
18 October 2011
Thematic statement on conventional weapons
Statement by H.E. Mr Gary Quinlan
Ambassador and Permanent Representative
of Australia to the United Nations
Mr Chairman
The proliferation and misuse of conventional weapons threatens all societies. From illicit small arms and ammunition that fuel conflicts between communities and across borders, or explosive remnants of war that maim and kill innocent civilians in many parts of the world, the uncontrolled trade and use of such weapons endangers security and development.
We are encouraged by the forward momentum over this past year to address these threats.
The Preparatory Committee on an Arms Trade Treaty made steady progress toward bringing that treaty into being at the diplomatic conference next year.
The Meeting of Governmental Experts under the UN Programme of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons was a successful first attempt at genuine expert-level discussions on practical implementation challenges.
Last month, many of us met for the Second Meeting of States Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions. This comparatively new addition to the global response to explosive remnants of war will play a key role in reducing threats to vulnerable populations.
These developments show that we can make progress on conventional weapons issues so long as States are committed to a common goal and determined to see it achieved.
Mr Chairman
Australia remains strongly committed to international cooperation on curbing the illicit trade and misuse of small arms and light weapons. We have provided practical assistance to help ensure the objectives of the UN Programme of Action are fully implemented, but recognise that a lot more work remains to be done. We are committed to providing significant assistance to the DRC, in support of the UN Programme of Action, which will deliver training on marking, stockpile management and destruction of small arms and light weapons held by the defence and security forces; as well as assist with collection and destruction of illicit small arms across the DRC.
The first ever Meeting of Governmental Experts under the Programme of Action was held in May this year and was ably chaired by Ambassador McLay of New Zealand.
The Meeting demonstrated that effective marking, tracing and record-keeping of small arms are fundamental steps not only to combating the illicit trade in these weapons, but also to strengthening national control over the possession, use and movement of firearms. Australia supported a number of developing countries to send experts to this meeting by contributing AUD150,000 to the UNDP voluntary sponsorship fund. The funds supported experts from Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Chad, Comoros, DRC, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Sudan, South Sudan, Swaziland, Zambia, PNG, Solomon Islands, and Timor Leste.
These productive exchanges will contribute to a sound basis for success at the Review Conference in 2012. At that Conference, we will work with others to strengthen the follow-up mechanisms for the Programme of Action, undertake a thorough assessment of implementation and improve understanding of its impact. Through this we look to identify where more intensive efforts are needed.
At the end of this month we have the Second Review Conference of the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development. We welcome the initiatives under this Declaration to incorporate armed violence reduction into development programs to better address the impacts of armed violence.
Mr Chairman
Australia welcomes the near universal recognition of the need to better regulate the arms trade. As the General Assembly has recognised, unregulated trade and the diversion of arms to the illicit market contribute to armed conflict, the displacement of people, organised crime and terrorism – ‘thereby undermining peace reconciliation, safety, security, stability and sustainable social and economic development’.
The second and third sessions of the Preparatory Committee for the United Nations Conference made strong headway in developing a solid basis for a treaty text. We congratulate the Preparatory Committee’s Chair, Ambassador Moritan of Argentina, for his skilful guidance of our work and we look forward to his continuing in this role at the 2012 Conference. Australia has been honoured to play a supportive role as a Friend of the Chair. We are fully supportive of the Chair’s paper as a solid basis for the Conference, including its extensive scope and indicative parameters.
Australia continues to pursue actively the achievement of an Arms Trade Treaty that is comprehensive but also practical and effective.
We want the ATT to help enhance global standards through creation and strengthening of national control mechanisms governing arms transfers. The Treaty should also indicate a base of common minimum standards for assessments of the transfer of arms against given criteria. International cooperation and assistance should be available to strengthen States’ capacities to regulate the cross –border movement of arms and prosecute violations.
Recognising that the ATT will be strengthened by universal adherence, Australia has actively sought the views and participation of a broad range of countries including small island developing countries, many of which are particularly susceptible to illicit arms trafficking.
Australia supported 18 government and civil society delegates from the Caribbean and Pacific to attend the critical Third PrepCom in July. Delegates shared experiences from their regions on developing common positions for international conventions and combating illicit small arms and light weapons.
Australia has contributed to regional efforts in the Caribbean by assisting CARICOM build common approaches on the ATT through two workshops. These workshops provided a forum for constructive dialogue for CARICOM members on the treaty’s implications and, importantly, involved women’s civil society groups. A third Australian supported regional workshop will be held in March 2012 in Jamaica.
Australia will also hold a Pacific Regional Workshop in March 2012 to facilitate Pacific Island states preparation for the UNPoA Review Conference and develop a regional position on the ATT before the final ATT negotiation conference in July next year.
This workshop will continue Australia’s work in the region to combat illicit weapons where, for instance, we have assisted the PNG Defence Force Armouries and Magazines Project in building seven high security armouries for the PNG Defence Force, thereby improving weapons storage, stock control and weapons management practices. Through these steps, the international community will build resilience in the legitimate trade in conventional weapons and make it harder for those who want to circumvent proper channels.
Mr Chairman
We congratulate the Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Lebanon for their bold leadership of the Convention on Cluster Munitions in its first two years. We are encouraged by the national ownership demonstrated by the two countries in their quest to clear their own territory of dangerous cluster munition remnants and take the message of the Convention to the world.
Australia was honoured to have served as the first Friend of the Chair on clearance and risk reduction. The endorsement of States Parties of steps for the efficient survey and clearance of affected lands will help intensify efforts to return land expeditiously to local communities.
Mr Chairman
Australia is a strong supporter of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons including the negotiations on Protocol VI to eradicate cluster munitions that cause unacceptable harm.
If agreed at the upcoming Review Conference, this Protocol would prohibit and require the destruction of large quantities of old, unreliable and indiscriminate cluster munitions. The Chair’s revised text also contains useful commitments on stockpile destruction, clearance, victim assistance and international cooperation and assistance.
Australia appreciates the potential humanitarian benefits that could be achieved by the successful conclusion of a Protocol to cover the use of cluster munitions – especially one that would include the major producers, users and stockpilers of cluster munitions who have not signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions.
Australia continues to contribute constructively to these CCW negotiations – seeking an outcome that maintains the integrity of the Convention on Cluster Munitions and recognises the worldwide humanitarian benefits that both of these agreements will deliver.
Mr Chairman
Australia congratulates Albania for its effective leadership of the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention since the last Meeting of States Parties.
Australia is a leading contributor to mine action around the world.
The Australian Government has committed to provide A$100 million to mine action from 2010 to 2014; delivering improved quality of life for victims, reducing the number of deaths and injuries, and enhancing the capacity of countries to manage their mine action programmes.
Our strong support to mine action considers the humanitarian impact of unexploded ordnance and affected States’ own priorities. In this way, we can directly improve the social and economic well-being of affected communities through incorporating clearance, risk reduction and victim assistance activities into development programmes.
In the past year, Australia has supported projects in Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Chad, the DRC, Egypt, Ethiopia, Georgia, Guinea Bissau, Iraq, Jordan, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Palestine, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tajikistan, Uganda and Vietnam .Working in partnership with affected countries, humanitarian organisations and local communities, we are removing the threat of old conflicts so new lives can be built.
Even after ten years, the Convention continues to go from strength to strength. It has seen over 44 million stockpiled mines destroyed, large areas of affected land cleared and thousands of survivors provided with additional support and assistance.
Over the past year, Australia has Co-Chaired with Uganda a Standing Committee which has enhanced links between victim assistance and disability rights. There are strong linkages between the practical efforts to assist survivors and the implementation of obligations on non-discrimination, accessibility, mobility and inclusiveness.
At the Eleventh Meeting of States Parties, to be held next month in Cambodia the Convention will return to a country deeply scarred by landmines and unexploded ordnance. We will collaborate with Cambodia, other States and civil society to promote the full realisation of the Convention’s important goals.
Mr Chairman
Australia was honoured to serve as its President at the Conference of High Contracting Parties of Protocol V of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons in November last year. The Conference promoted efforts to clear affected land, enhance transparency, strengthen preventative measures and assist survivors of accidents from explosive remnants of war.
Clearing and destroying explosive remnants of war and improving security of stockpiles of explosive ordnance will also reduce the availability of source material for improvised explosive devices.
Mr Chairman
We urge all States, where they have not already done so, to join these Conventions. Cluster munitions, landmines and other explosive remnants of war are a tragic legacy of conflict. They continue to constrain development in several of the poorest countries and have devastating socio-economic consequences.
Mr Chairman
Australia remains committed to working with others to address the challenges posed by the proliferation, misuse and unacceptable harm of conventional weapons.