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A Programme of Action
To prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and
light weapons (SALW), the States participants in the United Nations
Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Lights Weapons in All
Its Aspects adopted a wide range of political undertakings at the
national, regional and global levels. Among others, they undertook
to:
At the national level
- put in place, where they do not exist, adequate laws, regulations
and administrative procedures to exercise effective control over the
production of SALW within their areas of jurisdiction, and over the
export, import, transit or retransfer of such weapons,
- identify groups and individuals engaged in the illegal
manufacture, trade, stockpiling, transfer, possession, as well as
financing for acquisition, of illicit SALW, and take action under
appropriate national law against such groups and individuals;
- ensure that licensed manufacturers apply appropriate and reliable
marking on each SALW as an integral part of the production process;
- ensure that comprehensive and accurate records are kept for as long as
possible on the manufacture, holding and transfer of SALW under its
jurisdiction,
- ensure responsibility for all SALW held and issued by the State
and effective measures for tracing such weapons;
- put in place and implement adequate laws, regulations and
administrative procedures to ensure the effective control over the
export and transit of SALW, including the use of authenticated end-user
certificates;
- make every effort, without prejudice to the right of States
to re-export SALW that they have previously imported, to notify the
original exporting State in accordance with their bilateral agreements
before the retransfer of those weapons;
- develop adequate national legislation or administrative
procedures regulating the activities of those who engage in SALW
brokering;
- take appropriate measures against any activity that violates a
United Nations Security Council arms embargo;
- ensure confiscated, seized or collected SALW are destroyed;
- ensure that armed forces, police and any other body authorized to
hold SALW establish adequate and detailed standards and procedures
relating to the management and security of their stocks of these
weapons;
- develop and implement, where possible, effective disarmament,
demobilization and reintegration programmes;
- address the special needs of children affected by armed
conflict.
At the regional level
- encourage regional negotiations with the aim of concluding
relevant legally binding instruments aimed at preventing, combat and
eradicating the illicit trade, and where they doexist to ratify and
fully implement them;
- encourage the strengthening and establishing of moratoria or
similar initiatives in affected regions or subregions on the transfer
and manufacture of SALW;
- establish subregional or regional mechanisms, in particular
trans-border customs cooperation and networks for information-sharing
among law-enforcement, border and customs control agencies;
- encourage regions to develop measures to enhance transparency to
combat the illicit trade in SALW.
At the global level
- cooperate with the United Nations system to ensure the
effective implementation of arms embargoes decided b the Security
Council;
- encourage disarmament and demobilization of ex-combatants and
their reintegration into civilian life;
- encourage States and the World Customs Organization to enhance
cooperation with the International Criminal Police Organization
(Interpol) to identify those groups and individuals engaged in the
illicit trade in SALW in all its aspects;
- encourage international and regional organizations and States to
facilitate the appropriate cooperation of civil society, including
non-governmental organizations, in activities related to the prevention,
combat and eradication of the illicit trade in SALW;
- promote a dialogue and a culture of peace by encouraging
education and public awareness programmes on the problems of the illicit
trade in SALW.
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