Disarmament and International Security Committee
Preventing the Illicit Arms Trade
United Mexican States
Saginaw Arms & Sciences Academy
Malhar Amin
There are currently 850 million light weapons in circulation worldwide; 74% of the weapons are in civilian hands. Every year almost a million people die from injuries caused by illicit weapons, according to Gobierno de México. Illicit weapons are found everywhere in the world, but there are some hotspots where illicit weapons are found and traded easily. While the UN has set up ATT, it is simply not effective; not because nations don’t comply, but rather because most arms sales are done illegally. Currently the illicit arms trade is on the rise, and not just in underdeveloped nations, it is going on everywhere. Every country unwillingly contributes to the illicit arms trade daily. While it may seem that developed nations are not a proponent, they are and they heavily affect surrounding underdeveloped nations. In order to combat this increasing danger every country must work together to find a solution.
Currently there are 9,000 armories in the United States that border Mexico. These armories sell to the people and increase organized crime. According to Amnesty International 200,000 weapons enter Mexico from the United States (usually at a rate of 2,000 per day.) This heavily increases the firepower available to gangs and cartels that ravage the country. The illicit arms trade is just not local to Mexico, it is spread throughout all of Latin America and internationally. Currently many civil wars and protests are going on which increase the proliferation of guns. These civil wars cause an “arms race,” in which citizens feel the need to arm themselves through getting guns internationally or making guns by themselves. A major hub for arms trade is Colombia, which through anecdotal evidence, suggests that many weapons to Colombia are delivered internationally using the Panama Canal as a route.
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Mexico urges the UN to renew the ATT, or make a new treaty altogether. This treaty would firstly provide aid to countries currently being torn apart due to excessive arms in their countries. Second the treaty should urge the Security Council to monitor imports and exports of countries with these excessive arms. The treaty would also call upon the Security Council to place sanctions on countries that do not comply, and the Security Council will also put limits on items being traded that have been linked to gun-making. Every day the illicit arms trade gets worse, and in order to keep peace, we all must work together for the betterment of every nation, and the protection of our citizens.
- Malhar Amin
