Given the proliferation of armed conflicts in the Middle East, NGOs are sounding the alarm on arms exports: three NGOs have called for Tuesday, April 5 better control of the route of arms sold abroad by France. Members should begin on Tuesday examining the draft law on control of exports and imports of conventional weapons, for a vote April 12.
Amnesty International France, CCFD Earth and Oxfam Solidarity France, "MPs have a duty to ensure that French law contains provisions to prevent binding of the French arms are sold when there is a risk that they involved in violations of human rights, international humanitarian law, or hinder the economic and social development of peoples.
"The situation changed"
The three NGOs demand and tighter control of "end use and end-user" of weapons and materials purchased, sometimes re-exported to countries politically "sensitive". This is especially necessary that "the situation has fundamentally changed the traditional customers of France, the regimes in North Africa and the Middle East, can no longer be described as stable," said Nicolas Verken, Oxfam France, during a press briefing. If France "requires importing countries to issue export certificates," it is not enough, "said Zoheb Behalal, CCFD.
NGOs say they have documented cases of diversion of exported used equipment for which it had been sold in Israel, Chad, Pakistan. Field of transparency, "the public must know what has been regularly exported and what was forbidden to export," demanded Nicolas Verken. He said the argument that the specific publication and "read" such information could encourage competitors to the French arms industry does not, because "the UK's leading exporter of weapons," published regularly the list of export licenses granted and denied.
BAD RISK ASSESSED
These comments came at a time when British MPs published a report highlighting that "the current government, like its predecessor, have misjudged the risk that weapons are allowed to export to some countries in North Africa and the Middle East can be used in repression in these countries, "wrote the Commission of the House of Commons on the control of arms exports.
The Commission welcomes that 156 export licenses have been canceled since the uprisings in Libya, Bahrain, Egypt and Tunisia. But the number of revocations "shows how policy in this area has been misjudged," said Chairman of the Commission, John Stanley. "The government must say how they will reconcile the potential conflict of interest between the focus more often on the promotion of export of arms and his fervent defense of human rights," the report .
It cites in particular the licenses that were granted last year for export to Libya of ammunition for small arms, weapons and riot control tear gas. Bulletproof vests and binoculars infrared have been exported to Yemen, ammunition for small arms to Syria, sniper rifles to Saudi Arabia, the report said.
Lucas
