This September marks the fourth anniversary of the establishment of the Control Arms Foundation of India (CAFI). But they'll not be celebrating that this Saturday. Along with other organisations concerned with arms (including the UK's Campaign Against the Arms Trade), they will be marking the Global Day of Action for Arms Trade Treaty in New Delhi. This is to demonstrate their belief that international law and UN legislation is not enough to control global arms trade. In 1995, a group of Nobel Peace Laureates developed a model Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) in order to regulate and standardise this trade. This Saturday, these organisations will push for this model to be adopted and for the recommendations in it (including a requirement for states to consider human rights and humanitarian concerns when transferring arms) to be put into practice.
CAFI believes that women have largely been left out of the international arms debates until now and should now take the lead in discussions. For this reason, women from all walks of life, among them survivors of incidents involving guns and other arms, will speak alongside men this Saturday. Members of CAFI will speak on the progress of their work to date and members of parliament, academics and journalists will give speeches and lead interactive debate and discussion with students, faith leaders, policy-makers and members of civil society.
It is fantastic to see members of a civil society organisation working together on this issue. And it is no wonder, for twelve people die through guns violence on a daily basis. India has also been shocked by a recent spate of school shootings - a horror previously associated with Western countries. One example of the action taken against arms violence was a ‘Day of Activism against Increasing Armed Gun Violence on Women in India' showing the gendered dimension of this violence; the highest number of war-time gun casualties are among women and children, and the North East India conflicts have also seen women as the most seriously affected victims - not only because some have been shot dead, but also the economic and social effects on women when their husbands, sons or brothers are shot. But it is tragic that this has become such a problem in the largest democracy in the world which, since 2007, is the globe's second most heavily armed country. Earlier this year, the founder of CAFI, Binalakshami Nepram spoke at a session on ‘The Impact of Guns on Women's Lives' and told of CAFI's demands that women in an Indian household must first consent to the purchase of a gun by their husbands, fathers or any other man. The idea is that, by giving women a say in the guns held under their own roofs (and assuming that their consent will not always be forthcoming), the flow of firearms into private hands will be reduced.
This work is positive. But that it is necessary almost defies belief. How can it be that the UN's first attempt at controlling arms trade ever, did not take place until 2001? How can it be that Binalakshami had to dedicate her speech to as many as 5000 female victims of gun violence in Manipur, where the annual death toll has now reached 300? There is a long way to go. And events like this Saturday's show the excellent work being done in increasing awareness and taking each small step towards an Arms Trade Treaty.
