St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) and Jamaica ratified the new Arms Trade Treaty in New York on Tuesday, playing an historic role in helping end the irresponsible, lethal trade in small arms and light weapons and ammunition that are devastating lives in the Caribbean and across the globe.
The global arms trade is estimated to exceed US$85 billion.
The delegations of SVG and Jamaica on Tuesday attended a special ratification ceremony at the United Nations’ Headquarters, in New York, to mark the event.
Folade Mutota, president of the Caribbean Coalition for Development and the Reduction of Armed Violence (CDRAV) and member of the Control Arms Coalition, the global civil society network that led the campaign for the Arms Trade Treaty for well over a decade, attended the ceremony in New York.
“It is really positive that two more CARICOM member states have ratified the Arms Trade Treaty. St Vincent and the Grenadines hosted two of the four regional preparatory workshops at which CARICOM’s common negotiating position was agreed,” Mutota said.
“Jamaica was very instrumental during the negotiations when the region successfully pushed for the inclusion of small arms and ammunition in the treaty.
Caribbean civil society calls on our governments to do all that is necessary to implement this treaty,” she further stated.
Mutota said the road has been paved for governments to take effective measures to reduce significantly the proliferation of illegal arms and ammunition and the devastation that follows.
“Caribbean people expect swift implementation when the treaty comes into effect following the fiftieth ratification,” she said.
Since the Arms Trade Treaty opened for signature one year ago, 118 states have signed it, and so far 40 states including SVG and Jamaica have ratified this pioneering international agreement.
In order for the treaty to enter into force and become legally-binding international law, only 10 more states are required to ratify.
“CARICOM should be among those ten states. We encourage CARICOM Member States that have not yet done so to ratify this treaty now,” Mutota said.
By ratifying the ATT on Tuesday, SVG and Jamaica join other CARICOM member states, Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Guyana, and Trinidad and Tobago that have championed the increasing global momentum gathering in support of the ATT. Other countries depositing their instruments of ratification at the event yesterday were Australia, Austria, Belgium, Burkino Faso, Luxembourg, and Samoa.
“I can’t over emphasise the need for strong national implementation from the start. The collective wisdom which guided the CARICOM strategy for the negotiations must be retained so that together we can really make a difference to the millions of people living in fear of armed violence every day,” Mutota said.
The first thing we need to do is pull out of ALBA and distance ourselves from Cuba and Venezuela.
What is the point of ratifying a treaty when we are allies with two rubbish states that are buying arms and equipment like there will be no tomorrow. Unless we dump them there may well be no tomorrow for a lot of people.
June 2006 Venezuela buys 3 billion dollars worth of arms and equipment arms and equipment from Russia.
24 Russian-made Sukhoi Su-30 MK2 fighter jets and 53 military helicopters to Venezue a Kalashnikov rifle factory to be built in Venezuela.
Under a prior deal between the two countries, 100,000 Kalashnikov AK-103 rifles are supposed to arrive in Venezuela in 2006.
2007, Venezuela signs a contract to buy five Project 636 diesel submarines for $500 million, and four Project 637 Amur submarines at a later date.
2008, Russia delivered to Venezuela 472 missiles and launching mechanisms, 44 attack helicopters and 24 combat aircraft, purchases funded by Venezuelan oil sales.
2009, Russia delivered 1,800 shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles to Venezuela.
2010, Russia sells Venezuela large ballistic missiles for $00 million, S-300PMU-1 (SA-20 Gargoyle) is an extended range version of S-300PMU with a limited anti-ballistic missile capability.
2012 Russia and Venezuela agree a deal for the supply of a further 100 T-72 tanks.
2012, Venezuela agree to buy Sukhoi SU-35 Flanker, fighter aircraft from Russia after agreeing a $4 billion loan from Russia.
February 2014 – Russia is negotiating with Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, to build navel bases for its military fleet.
The same thing has been going on between Russia and Cuba.
@Peter Binose, do not start something you cant win. Youre way off target again. Go comment on something else, or go write another smash the ULP government letter for Caribbean News Now!
What a Pathetic individual? If all the Nappies are like you, heaven help us.
Anytime I hear anyone chatting nonsense about socialism – – I know they don’t know what they are talking about!
That is an issue, a talking point, which existed mainly between the 1960’s and 1990’s. When Russia imploded, and the German conflict lessened at that time, the matter took a back-step on the world stage.
Today, even the bastion of capitalism, the good old USA, is rebuilding its nonsensical breakdown in relations between themselves and Cuba. For anyone to suggest otherwise, shows they are foolishly still stuck in the twentieth century
ALBA, Cuba and Venezuela present no threat to St Vincent’s independence and continued developmental thrust.
Even the USSR was broken-up by Ronald Reagan. Why then do unlearned individuals continue to embarrass themselves, writing abut issues they know nothing of?
Beware of the noise that EMPTY BARRELS create!
PKnight in rusty armour. What on earth are you attacking me for? is not what I wrote absolute fact?
Can you show me where I have written something untruthful, nasty or spiteful.
Are you a supporter of state violence? Do you support the killing and mutilation of hundreds of people on the streets of Caracas, currently killings by squads of special forces Cubans.
ALBA is based on a military grouping, which as a group hasn’t yet fully exposed itself. But its only a matter of time. They have an Academy which is currently teaching member states army and police force leaders, urban warfare, warfare that can be used against citizens and legitimate governments of the area. They have been using Iranian Revolutionary Guard, and more recently Russian advisers have arrived also. Sounds far fetched but check it out.
You see rusty Knight, its all very well supporting a Marxist home regime, but in doing so you are supporting the killing of Venezuelans and the funding and training of urban guerrillas.
Asking me to be quite on this matter is out of order and counter to freedom of speech for your own political ends.
This ULP is not Labour, its Marxist, the old Labour party was hijacked by the MNU a Marxist party, who cloaked themselves in Labour attire so as they would become acceptable to the voters. If they had called themselves the Unity Marxist Party, they would of stayed in the political wilderness for ever.
Tell me this, are you a supporter of huge sums of money that was hiked around Kingstown, millions of US dollars in cash. Were you part of the big share out?
You wrote and I quote “What is the point of ratifying a treaty when we are allies with two rubbish states that are buying arms and equipment like there will be no tomorrow. Unless we dump them there may well be no tomorrow for a lot of people.” Rubbish!
Peter Binose. There must be hundreds of other Vincis who would want to indulge you, I would not. I prefer to point out youre not speaking the truth.
For example, US military spending is 54 times the spending of Cuba…The US with it’s massive budget ,is the world biggest spender on military hardware, accounting for almost two fifth of the world military expenditure…about 39%..