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Oxfam is calling for controls on the trade in arms such as the gun this man carries in Cambodia. Photo: Nic Dunlop/Oxfam
The unregulated supply of weapons makes it easy for criminals to murder, for soldiers to kill indiscriminately, and for police to arbitrarily take lives. Today's weapons are quicker and more powerful than ever before. And in the wrong hands, faster and more powerful weapons mean more abuse and more wasted lives.
Every year, throughout the world, more than half a million people are killed by armed violence – that's one person every minute.
The arms industry suffers from widespread corruption and bribes. And it makes its profits on the back of machines designed to kill and maim human beings. The arms trade is out of control, fuelling conflict, poverty and human rights abuses worldwide. Every government is responsible.
By 2020, the number of deaths and injuries from war and violence will overtake the number of deaths caused by killer diseases such as malaria.
The only way to end this cycle of poverty and suffering is to control the trade in arms. The Control Arms campaign is asking governments to toughen up controls on the arms trade.
Take action
- Sign the million faces petition
- Watch our parody of the arms trade and then send it to your friends