Remarks by Ms. Izumi Nakamitsu, High Representative for Disarmament Affairs on Small Arms - 8713th Security Council Meeting.
The UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu told the Security Council, “the destabilizing accumulation, illicit transfer and misuse of small arms and light weapons continue to initiate, sustain and exacerbate armed conflict and pervasive crime.”
Speaking at the Security Council today (05 Feb), UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu addressed two themes of high relevance to the work of the Council—the role of illicit small arms, light weapons and their ammunition in conflict and pervasive crime; and the deeply cross-cutting and wide-ranging impact of illicit small arms and light weapons flows.
Drawing upon the content of the latest report of the Secretary-General from 2019, Nakamitsu said, “in situations of conflict and post-conflict, the majority of acts of violence are carried out with small arms and light weapons.”
She added, “on a global scale, small arms were used in nearly 50 per cent of all violent deaths between 2010 and 2015. This translates to more than 200,000 deaths each year.”
Nakamitsu noted that with an estimated one billion small arms in circulation worldwide, the use of these weapons in lethal violence, whether in conflict or non-conflict settings, is prevalent across regions and subregions from the Americas to Africa to Southern Europe. No State is immune from the challenges posed by illicit arms flows.
The High Representative also reiterated, “small arms and light weapons are the weapons of choice in intra-state conflicts and for terrorism, organized crime and gang warfare.”
She said, “current and past crises that have been addressed by this Council, from the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Haiti to Mali, have all been aggravated by the widespread availability and uncontrolled flow of small arms and light weapons and their ammunition.”
In this context, Nakamitsu highlighted the mandate of the newly-established United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti that provides for advisory capacity on gang violence, community violence reduction and weapons and ammunition management.
She also told the Council “diversion remains a major source of weapons and their ammunition for gangs, criminal organizations and terrorist groups.”
Nakamitsu continued, “illicit small arms, light weapons and their ammunition originate from varied sources—from poorly-managed State-owned stockpiles, battlefield capture or loss following State collapse. There are also ample diversion opportunities along the supply-chain from manufacture through end-use.”
The High Representative also stated, “the negative impact of illicit small arms and light weapons flows is cross-cutting and multi-dimensional.”
She pointed out that “illicit small arms and light weapons have a multitude of implications for security, human rights, sustainable development, gender equality and conflict prevention.”
Nakamitsu also raised her concern on the fact that “small arms continue to facilitate a vast spectrum of acts that constitute human rights violations, including the killing and maiming of children, rape and other forms of sexual and gender-based violence.”
She reiterated, “armed violence perpetrated with small arms and light weapons erodes legal and peaceful dispute resolution mechanisms. And contemporary armed conflict is also a primary driver of displacement and food insecurity.”
In view of the gravity of the challenges on small arms, the Security Council requested the Secretary-General to begin reporting on small arms on a biennial basis beginning in 2008. Since this request, there have been six reports of the Secretary-General on this topic.
