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Statement by
Mr. President, Indonesia is of the view that the
impact of these weapons has neither been small nor light. They have
proved their capacity to inflict and prolong human suffering and inhibit
economic development. Regrettably, these are what they will continue
to do unless we effectively implement the PoA. Indonesia recognizes
that the dangers of illicit SALW cannot possibly be addressed by individual
nations alone, given the regional and international dimensions of
the issue. Five years after the adoption of the PoA, we recognize that many initiatives have been taken around the world. However, despite this political support, there is not much evidence that the implementation of the PoA is achieving its stated goals of eradicating the illicit trade in SALW and of reducing the human suffering being caused by them. We hope that this Review Conference addresses the link between declared political support for the PoA and the actual implementation of its provisions, as well as the link between implementation and the real impact on the ground. As a follow up process, we noted the fact that some countries argue on the necessity of the follow-up mechanism. We believe that even with such mechanism in terms of Biennial Meeting of States (BMS) and a Review Conference, our efforts to implement the PoA have not yet fulfilled our expectation. Therefore, we attach the importance on the need of convening BMS to review the implementation of the PoA with a strengthened mandate as well as a review cycle process to take forward the agreements at the Review Conference and to establish more targeted measures for further implementation and effective action on key issues. This would allow any momentum of success in this field to be maintained. The follow-up mechanism of BMS and further review cycle will afford room for further discussions among States on these important issues. In this connection, my delegation cautions against any attempts to take the SALW process outside the United Nations. Within the UN, Indonesia will continue to support any efforts to strengthen the implementation of the PoA. In our view, we must exhaust all means to take the United Nations process forward. We believe that the United Nations is best placed to make a success of the challenge SALW. Mr. President, We would like to see the outcome document of this Review Conference offer a stronger commitment to the international assistance and cooperation. While we acknowledge, however, that the availability of international assistance to support implementation of the PoA has grown over the last five years, the level of assistance is still insufficient to help affected countries, considering the magnitude of the danger the illicit trade in SALW poses to their communities. Being an essential aspect of the full implementation of the PoA, we reiterate our call for an effective means to match needs with resources in international assistance. For Indonesia, we attach the importance of capacity building and technical assistance in the fields of marking and tracing, record keeping, border and custom control and information sharing among law enforcement agencies. Both donor and recipient countries
should find ways to bridge the gap between what is available and what
is needed. We observe that there is certainly a significant pool of
resources that is available and ready to be distributed in an effective
and targeted manner. At the same time, there is also the need in many
developing countries to boost their capacity to implement the PoA.
In this context therefore, there is a merit of a centralized mechanism,
perhaps within the UN system that could serve as a clearing house
or point that would bridge the demand and supply side. My delegation would be supportive of language that would ban the transfer of SALW to non-state armed groups. We believe that no armed group outside of the State should be allowed to bear weapons. We also believe that regulating civilian possession of SALW will enhance our effort to prevent its misuse. In our view, the issue of ammunition should also be addressed in the context of the PoA because in the absence of ammunition, small arms and light weapons pose no danger. My delegation also recognizes the
linkage between the problems associated with illicit SALW and development,
in the sense that the misuse and uncontrolled proliferation of these
weapons hampers development and the potential for economic growth.
We are prepared to work to address this dimension of the small arms
problem in this Review Conference. While action at the global level is of tremendous importance, the significance of cooperation at the regional level cannot be overlooked. In our view, the next “line of defence” after national implementation of the PoA must be the strengthening of actions against illicit SALW through the enhancement of ties and cooperation among neighboring countries. We note that traffickers are quick to adopt trade routes where national controls are weak and will take advantage of every lapse that they can find. That is why Indonesia will continue to pursue regional cooperation to stamp out illicit SALW. Finally Mr. President, my delegation expresses the hope that this Review Process will convince members of the international community that on the issue of SALW they can be doing much more. We further hope that our debate during these couple of weeks will re-energize the process that the PoA began in 2001. I thank you, Mr. President.
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