Campaigns: Control Arms
October 2008: UN Arms Trade Treaty
On Friday 31 October, 147 countries at the UN voted to move towards an Arms Trade Treaty. As part of the International Control Arms Campaign, millions of people around the world have called on their governments to reach agreement on a treaty that has human rights and development at its core. Their calls have been answered with these 147 countries agreeing to take treaty negotiations to the next critical stage and the establishment of a working group to discuss the text of the treaty. This is a significant increase on the 139 countries that voted to start the process in 2006, signalling global support for this treaty. Only two countries, the US and Zimbabwe, voted against the treaty. This is a huge step forward and achievement for all those who added their voice to this campaign.
The Irish public continues to signal their support for an Arms Trade Treaty and their actions to date have contributed to ensuring that this issue remains a priority for governments around the world. Following its recent success in negotiating a Convention on Cluster Munitions, the Irish Government continues to support international efforts to establish an Arms Trade Treaty that would curtail the devastating impact of arms transfers in some of the poorest and most fragile countries in the world.
Now, the Irish Government must continue to play its part in these processes and we must continue the campaign to ensure that governments urgently deliver a comprehensive treaty on the arms trade.
About Control Arms
Nearly €540 billion/£422 billion is spent on military equipment each year. In many developing countries, the easy availability of weapons and the lack of regulation fuels hunger, poverty and destruction. The arms trade is globalised and needs to be globally controlled. Campaigners around the world took part in the Million Faces Petition led by Oxfam, Amnesty International and IANSA. As a result, the UN voted in favour of a resolution to start work on an Arms Trade Treaty.
Thanks to pressure from campaigners before the vote, not only did the text of the treaty change to include a direct reference to Human Rights Law and International Humanitarian Law, but 116 countries agreed to co-sponsor the resolution and 139 countries voted in favour of it. This treaty will have a real impact on the arms trade, and will ultimately prevent weapons ending up in the hands of human rights abusers, and fuelling conflict and poverty.
We will continue to monitor the UN process to ensure that the Treaty process is completed. You can help 
Stopped the Bombs
As well as our work on a treaty for conventional 'small' arms, Oxfam Ireland has recently been campaigning on the issue of cluster bombs, as part of the Cluster Munitions Coalition.
Cluster bombs wreck lives. Across the world they kill thousands of people each year. Not only do they not discriminate between soldiers and civilians, they go on killing and maiming long after conflicts are over.
A ground-breaking treaty was signed in Dublin at the end of May 2008. Find out more
Act Now 
