Towards a global treaty to control the small arms and light weapons trade: a view from Mercosur

This is a study of the Viva Rio Arms Control Project, elaborated by Rebeca Pérez with the financial support of SweFOR. The document considers, with a pedagogical approach, the current proposal to establish an international legally binding treaty that would establish clear criteria and procedures for States to follow when authorizing the international transfers of arms and ammunitions, and what limitations should be taken into account with regard to International Law and human rights. This proposal, known as the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), originates as an initiative of civil society and establishes a landmark  convention by laying down the basic rules governing how the international commerce of arms should be supervised and regulated.

However, what is the pertinent International law applicable here? Upon which norms must the actions of States regarding arms transfers be based? How can one implement this landmark convention? This study seeks to answer this and other questions, beginning with the analysis and comparison of international and regional instruments, as well as of the norms effective in the ten member countries of Mercosur.

The first part deals with how the struggle is progressing to control arms in the world, in the light of the adoption of significant controlling instruments. Most of these efforts are focused on actions at regional levels - especially in Africa, Latin America and Europe. The Inter-American Convention Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and other Related Materials (Cifta), was the first legally binding regional agreement that linked the proliferation of firearms to the observance of the law and the control of criminality.

The second part addresses ten basic questions about the ATT, in a didactic question-and-answer format, with the aim of promoting a better understanding of the nature of the treaty, of how the proposal for a global treaty was worked out and at which point of the debate the proposal now stands.

Finally, the last part deals with the core subject matter of the document. One finds in it a brief introduction to Mercosur and to its efforts to achieve arms control. In addition, norms and legislation are compared to the compatibility - or incompatibility - of the current texts of the ATT vis à vis the prevailing norms exercised by the member states and associate members of Mercosur, with a focus upon the case of international arms transfers: their entry, export, transit and the role of the middle men).

With the support of:

SweFOR is a Swedish non-governmental organization founded in 1919. It is an ecumenical movement with 2,500 members in Sweden. SweFOR works on issues such as peace, non-violence and reconciliation through its different programs. In Latin America it works with observers of civil peace and with the prevention of armed violence with its program on small and light arms.

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