'The Russian Federation's war of aggression against Ukraine has exacted a devastating toll on the Ukrainian civilian population. Mounting an adequate humanitarian response will hinge on properly quantifying its scale and nature—never an easy task in a conflict zone, and immeasurably harder amid the fog of disinformation.
Anatomy of Civilian Disarmament in Jonglei State: Recent Experiences and Implications examines two recent experiences of civilian disarmament in Jonglei State. Both interventions generated weapons surrenders but had substantially different human security outcomes. By looking closely at the local contexts, design, and execution of these two campaigns, important lessons are highlighted for future civilian disarmament and security improvement efforts in South Sudan.
Small arms availability and misuse have been a problem in Kenya for many years, but the post-2007 election violence increased the urgency of small arms reduction efforts. While significant progress has been made, law enforcement efforts to control the proliferation of small arms still face considerable challenges, according to a new study.
Most of the world’s firearms are privately owned. In 2007 the Small Arms Survey estimated that civilians owned some 650 million of the world’s firearms, with armed forces owning around 200 million, and 26 million in the hands of law enforcement.
With the world’s factories delivering millions of newly manufactured firearms annually—far outnumbering those being destroyed—civilian ownership is growing in most countries. The highest national rate of civilian firearm ownership is in the United States, with at least 90 firearms per every 100 people.
It is not difficult to find evidence of Brazil’s high levels of armed violence. The proof is in the grim statistics of the country’s hospitals, morgues, and prisons. This Special Report looks at two aspects of this problem. First, it explores the thriving Brazilian small arms industry, which, together with international trafficking networks, contributes to control failures and fuels small arms violence. Second, it maps out weapons holdings—by weapon type, holder, and location.
A study by the Small Arms Survey and the Ligue Iteka with support from UNDP–Burundi and Oxfam–NOVIB.
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