The report and campaign were launched with a graphic display in Trafalgar Sqaure, London, representing the number of people killed by armed violence each day.Photo: Christian Aid/Brenda Hayward
'Each year hundreds of thousands of people are unlawfully killed, tortured, raped and displaced through the misuse of arms.'

A new report highlights problems with the arms trade and a new campaign is launched calling for the global regulation of the industry

Every minute, someone is killed by armed violence and the industry behind the supply of weapons is dangerously unregulated, allowing weapons to reach repressive governments, human rights abusers and criminals, a new report says.

'Shattered Lives: The Case for Tough International Arms Controls' has been published by Oxfam, Amnesty International and IANSA, the International Network on Small Arms, of which Christian Aid is a member.

The report claims that national arms export controls are riddled with loopholes, and that the easy availability of arms increases the incidence of armed violence, acting as a trigger for conflicts and prolonging wars once they break out.

The report found that conflict and armed crime prevents aid reaching those who desperately need it, and often leads to the denial of health care and education.

It also said that the terrorist attacks on September 11, and the resulting 'war on terror', have fuelled weapons proliferation, rather than focusing political will on controlling arms.

"Each year hundreds of thousands of people are unlawfully killed, tortured, raped and displaced through the misuse of arms. With the 'war on terror' dominating the international agenda, there should be renewed interest in arms control. Yet the reverse has occurred. The vicious circle of arms transfers, conflict and abuse can and must be stopped," said Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International.

The report also claims that 16 billion units of ammunition are produced each year - more than two new bullets for every man, woman and child on the planet - and nearly 60 per cent of small arms are in the hands of civilians.

To address these concerns, Control Arms, a global campaign in over 50 countries, was also launched with the aim of reducing arms proliferation and misuse, and to convince governments to introduce a binding arms trade treaty to control the $21 billion per year industry.

The Christian Aid-supported International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA) launched the campaign to focus on promoting an international treaty covering arms transfers - the Arms Trade Treaty - as well as a number of regional and locally appropriate measures designed to limit arms proliferation and misuse.

"Governments, preoccupied with a search for nuclear, biological and chemical weapons in their fight against 'terrorism', have essentially ignored the real 'weapons of mass destruction' - small arms. So they continue to proliferate, at the cost of hundreds of thousands of lives," said Rebecca Peters, Director of the International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA).

Alongside the call for an Arms Trade Treaty, the Control Arms campaign is also calling for governments to develop and strengthen regional arms-control, to rigorously control national arms exports, brokers and dealers, and do more to prevent law enforcers misusing their weapons and to protect citizens from armed violence.

For more information about the report and the Control Arms campaign, visit www.controlarms.org.