No. 313/PHMS/II/03

Press Release

Indonesia to Host Regional Seminars on “ Small Arms and Light Weapons “ and "Transparency in Armament, “

Indonesia, in cooperation with the U .N .Department of Disarmament Affairs and the Government of Japan, Germany, Canada, and The Netherlands, will host two regional seminars in Bali. On February 10-11, participants will discuss "Small Arms and Light Weapons," to be followed by "Transparency in Armaments" on February 14-15.

Participants will include delegates from countries in the Asia Pacific region, the United Nations Secretariat, non-governmental organizations and representative of U .N .agencies. Among the experts being expected are Dr Nazir Kamal of the United Nations Department for Disarmament Affairs; Colonel Gerhard Schepe of the German Mission to the Conference on Disarmament, Geneva; and Dr. Y urii Kryvonos, Director, Conflict Prevention Center. Others are Mr. Otto Venbeme of the N etherlands, Ambassador Mitsuro Donowaki of Japan, Ms. Adelena Caracostea of the Ministry of Defense, Romania, and Ms. Agnes Pust of Canada.

One of the main objectives of the seminar on "Small Arms and Light Weapons" is to promote the regional implementation of the Programme of Action adopted at the U .N . Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects, held in New York in July 2001. The second seminar aims at, among others, promoting the U.N. instruments on arms transparency (e.g. U.N. Register on Conventional Arms and U .N .Standardized Reporting on Military Expenditure) by increasing awareness and familiarity with the instruments.

New York, 6 Februari 2003