Publication

This paper describes how the excessive accumulation and unlawful use of small arms and light weapons inflict an increasingly high toll on the international community. The author details how small arms shatter human lives, threaten basic security, and restrict development, and explains why existing efforts to control light weapons are inadequate. The paper argues that states and their citizens must change the way they export, procure, distribute, control, use and store small arms and light weapons. The author emphasizes that international change must occur in a matter that is unambiguous and irreversible, with a commitment of political and financial resources commensurate to the scale of the issue.