US attempts to create back-door for arms trade to brutal regimes that would include Bahrain

Is U.S. Trying To Gut Arms Trade Treaty?
Amnesty International – 25 March, 2013

The US is trying to strip the Arms Trade Treaty of critical human rights protections.

By Nate Smith, Arms Trade Treaty Negotiations Observer

Late on Friday, the latest draft of the Arms Trade Treaty was shared publicly. It’s not looking good.

Here’s what it boils down to: Will world leaders take the necessary steps now to prevent sending weapons to countries where they will likely be used for torture, summary executions, and other human rights abuses? Or will they allow business as usual and wait until even more staggering numbers of civilians have been killed until they finally decide to stop arms shipments to those who are targeting civilians?

The second option is called the “body bag” approach. The US government is among those who actually think this is a good idea. It wants to allow critical human rights protections to be kept out of the treaty. These would require countries to exercise some due diligence in making sure they aren’t transferring weapons to places where they know they’ll be used in extrajudicial executions, disappearances, or torture – a global “background check” for arms transfers. …more