Combating the small arms trade

In line with Pretoria’s policy to combat the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons, the South African Police Service last week destroyed 102 mt of guns and spares worth an estimated US $3.5 million.

A statement by the South African government to the Preparatory Committee for the UN’s Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons said that a total of 27,816 small arms such as pistols and revolvers - the bulk of which were redundant police weapons - were destroyed on 17 January. “The South African government is committed to combating the flow of illegal arms across our borders and many successes have been reported,” the statement said. “South Africa trusts that its initiative to unilaterally destroy all surplus small arms will serve as an example,” it added.