Lack of commitment hampers Sadc protocol on firearms

In this light, the commissioning of cross-border and violent crimes is prevalent in the region by criminals easily accessing the small arms and ammunition.
Addressing a media conference in Victoria Falls yesterday, the head of Interpol regional bureau for Sadc, Mr Chilika Simfukwe, said almost all the borders were porous, thereby fuelling the proliferation of small arms.
Mr Simfukwe called for the harmonisation of rules and regulations on arms by member states and the continent at large for the fight against the scourge to be won.
The workshop held under the theme: “The fight against the accumulation and trafficking of firearms in Africa” was co-ordinated by the Regional Centre for Smalls Arms (RECSA) and funded by the European Union Commission.
Sadc member states signed a Protocol on Control of Firearms, Ammunition and Other Related Materials in 2001 but the region was failing to harmonise the rules and regulations to curb the small arms and ammunitions scourge.
“This is why we are holding this workshop aimed at establishing joint cross-border initiatives to fight the              smuggling of small firearms. Almost all borders in the                     Sadc region are porous in this regard and we have to complement each other to fight the proliferation of these firearms, which           has led to the increase in violent crimes and drug dealing,” he said.
Mr Simfukwe said he was happy to note that Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique and Zimbabwe were meeting to strategise on how the proliferation of the arms could be reduced.
He added that for the initiative to succeed they had bought firearm marking machines, which he said had been distributed to member states to mark firearms within their borders.
“Firearms procured and marked can be easily identified in case they are stolen and used in committing of criminal activities. With the marking machines, we are now able to trace the origins of the firearm and that will help to track down culprits and investigations,” he said.
Mr Simfukwe noted that Zimbabwe received two firearm marking machines late last year adding that the relevant personnel had undergone training in this regard.
RECSA executive director Dr Francis Sang said his organisation had received funding to the tune of three million Euros from the European Commission, which he said was being administered by AU and regional bodies.
He said the funding would run for three years adding that it would be evenly distributed to all the AU regions.
“Africa is greatly affected by the scourge of small arms and such a programme will greatly assist the continent. This workshop is the second of its own after the one we  held with Tanzania, Burundi and Democratic Republic of Congo. However, Sadc is leading the pack in Africa in curbing proliferation of the small arms and we want to invite them in our future meeting with other regions since we want to be at the same level for this exercise to be a success.
“One region cannot do it alone — it will not achieve ultimate results and therefore the need to work together as a continent.”
Assistant Commissioner Daniel Nyamlabe, director Sadc police, paid tribute to the police regional body Southern African Regional Police Chief Council Organisation (SARPCCO) for the great strides in combating crime through joint bi- and multi-lateral cross-border operations.
He said what was left was for the region member states to implement the 2001 protocol on arms so that there was no discord in issues of firearms.
Since the inception of SARPCCO member states have engaged in joint cross border arms and ammunition collection and destruction operations.
Guest of honour Victoria Falls Mayor Councillor Nkosilathi Jiyane commended Sarpcco, RECSA and the European countries for the partnership to fight the proliferation of small arms in the region.
He said the partnership was coming at a time when peace and tranquility was demanded especially by Zimbabwe and Zambia ahead of the holding of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation General Assembly in August 2013.
“While I have to admit that we have not recorded violent crimes in the resort town of Victoria Falls, it is always good to note that there are plans to increase control of firearms. The whole world is watching Victoria Falls and Livingstone and therefore the need to be at our best especially in crime prevention,” he said.