As world leaders meet in New York this month to negotiate the first ever global Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), the Internet has been buzzing with conspiracy theories that such a treaty would infringe on Second Amendment gun ownership rights in the U.S.
The National Rifle Association (NRA) is one of the more high-profile groups to take aim at the arms trade treaty. The organization recently posted a series of videos on their site driven at best by misinformation and at worst a deliberate effort to undermine the treaty.
The videos spew a string of distortions, misrepresentations and outright lies, claiming that if the arms trade treaty is passed, then "what you'll wind up with is gun control on an international level specifically designed to be used against honest, law-abiding people."
Such distortions only give credence to allegations that the NRA's real agenda may be to protect the lucrative weapons industry, which helps bankroll the organization. That industry is estimated to exceed $60 billion annually and benefits immensely from the current free-for-all in the global trade in weapons and ammunition.
Let's break down fact from fiction.
Will the ATT stop the sale of handguns in the United States?
No, it will not.
Will the ATT affect the ability of Americans to own guns for hunting, shooting or any other legal purpose?
No, it will not.
The UN General Assembly resolution starting the process on the Arms Trade Treaty explicitly states that it is "the exclusive right of States to regulate internal transfers of arms and national ownership, including through constitutional protections on private ownership."
No arms trade treaty will therefore infringe on that exclusive right.
Don't just take our word for it. The U.S. State Department has said:
There will be no restrictions on civilian possession or trade of firearms otherwise permitted by law or protected by the U.S. Constitution. There will be no dilution or diminishing of sovereign control over issues involving the private acquisition, ownership, or possession of firearms, which must remain matters of domestic law.
What the ATT will do:
It will stop the black market in arms on global level.
Every minute, someone dies from armed violence. Because of the out-of-control worldwide arms trade, thousands more are raped, forced into becoming child soldiers or otherwise injured.
For years, Amnesty International has been working with partners in the U.S. and around the world who are sick and tired of weapons falling into the hands of human rights abusers. We are working to save lives by demanding a "bulletproof" arms trade treaty that would:
So, again, who exactly stands to gain by opposing the treaty?
Follow Amnesty International on Twitter: www.twitter.com/amnesty
That equation is (60 minutes * 24 hours) * 365 days = 525,600 dead. But the big thing to note in that sentence is "armed" not firearm or gun.
from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rwandan_Genocide:
Many members of the Interahamwe and Impuzamugambi were armed only with machetes. Even after the 1993 peace agreement signed in Arusha, businessmen close to General Habyarimana imported 581,000 machetes from China[15] for Hutu use in killing Tutsi, because machetes were cheaper than guns.
It is not the firearm or knife or club -- it is the person wielding it.
Anti-gun = Anti-Constitution
Anti-Gun = Anti-freedom
Anti-Gun = Anti-equal rights
Anti-Gun = Anti-American
http://www.amnestyusa.org/research/human-rights-basics/universal-declaration-of-human-rights
It is not surprising that this article refers to the effectiveness of American firearms rights groups in shaping and directing the evolution of the ATT as an excuse to mock them.
This treaty has a provision that requires member nations to adopt weapon tracing and registration legislation. It defines any weapon which is not marked and registered as "illicit."
The weapon must be marked and recorded "at the time of manufacture" before the company knows for certain whether the weapon will be sold here in the US or overseas. So firearms sold here in the US will be also be marked and recorded and don't let anyone tell you different. The records will be kept on file with the exporting country for a minimum of 30 years, if not indefinately.
Also there is no provision made to require the exporting country's records be destroyed for any weapons we buy from overseas. If you buy a shotgun from Italy, Nothing forces Italy to destroy the records. Here is a link to a pdf file that outlines the tracing provisions.
http://www.poa-iss.org/InternationalTracing/ITI_English.pdf
Have a look at Section II, Subsection 6, c which defines any weapon not marked and recorded as "illicit."
Then Check out Section II Subsection 8, a which requires the recording and marking "at the time of manufacture."
Then look at Section IV, Subsection 12 which requires that the records be kept for 30 years or indefinately.
These things are intentionally missing from this myth/fact article.
the heck for ?!?.....maybe just flagged and the mod will have to take time
to put it back up ?.....]
You link is about a framework for activities to counter the illicit trade in small arms. The arms trade treaty will aim to regulate the legal, international arms trade.