MISSING PIECES - Inter-Parliamentary Union

INTRODUCTION
A HUMAN SECURITY APPROACH:
A PARLIAMENTARY AGENDA FOR ACTION
Reducing the human cost of gun violence and controlling the arms trade
may appear to be ambitious and complex tasks, and indeed require tackling
several interconnected factors. Some relate to the weapons themselves,
which must be controlled, and some relate to individual and group behaviour,
which must be influenced. The following human security framework
for global action on gun violence identifies five overarching objectives for
national action:
(1) Regulating the use of small arms by civilians, armed forces, and nonstate
armed groups;
(2) Draining the existing pool of excess guns and ammunition;
(3) Regulating the transfer, sale and shipment of small arms;
(4) Reducing the demand for guns; and
(5) Responding to the needs of gun violence survivors.
In May 2006 the Inter-Parliamentary Union adopted a landmark resolution
on “The role of parliaments in strengthening control of trafficking
in small arms and light weapons and their ammunition” (see Annex 1).
Missing Pieces provides further guidance on how its provisions can be
implemented in practice. Seven themes are explored where action and
policy development from parliamentarians, law-makers and shapers and
civil society are both possible and urgently needed. Each theme presents
examples of successful initiatives, analysis for policy making and debate,
and recommendations for action.
Theme 1 - Preventing misuse – national firearms legislation: Efforts to
control guns and ammunition must address the fact that the bulk of the
world’s small arms arsenal is in the hands of civilians, and that civilian
misuse is a primary source of firearm-related death and insecurity.
Theme 2 - Controlling supply: In a world where there is already an overabundance
of conventional weapons, the lack of sufficient regulatory control
over small arms production and trade, both legal and otherwise, contributes
to widespread death and misery and inhibits sustainable development.
Theme 3 - Assistance to survivors of gun violence: Gun violence generates
immense human suffering, yet treatment, rehabilitation, and reintegration
processes are typically poorly prioritised. Much is needed to better understand
this dimension and to identify populations at risk, in order to target
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