IANSA Update 29 February 2008

Zimbabwe: Police prepared to shoot in forthcoming elections
Croatia: Firearm injury and deaths continue for at least 5 years after war
US: Brady report counteracts gun lobby's push for students to carry guns
Other news: Europe's poor record on arms transfers; IANSA Women at the UN; Oxfam West Africa bulletin

Zimbabwe: Police prepared to shoot in forthcoming elections

Zimbabwe's police chief says officers will be ready to use firearms if the elections on 29 March spark violence like that seen recently in Kenya. Police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri, an ally of President Mugabe, said the police were "empowered by law to use full force, including the use of firearms to quell disturbances." Zimbabwe's Public Order and Security Act allows a police officer to use firearms "if he finds other methods to be ineffective or inappropriate." On 11 March, last year Zimbabwean police shot dead an unarmed member of the opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). According to the Police's own reports, police fired warning shots in a rally of 1000 people and then shot dead the father of three. A police squad later returned to the dead man's funeral where they shot and injured two more activists. Read more here.

Croatia: Firearm injury and deaths continue for at least 5 years after war

Firearms continue to pose a hazard for children and young people up to 5 years after a war ends, according to a study from the Universities of Zagreb (Croatia) and Iowa (US). Researchers studied deaths caused by guns and explosive devices among 0 -19 year olds from 1995, when the Homeland War ended, to 2000. They found that homicide rates were twice the pre-war level, and suicide rates were 3 times the pre-war level. These rates returned to pre-war levels between 2000-2005. Guns were used in over 80% of the post-war weapons-related deaths. The researchers suggest that firearm injury prevention programs should be implemented as part of war reparation efforts.. Read more here.

US: Brady report counteracts gun lobby's push for students to carry guns
Legislation that would force US colleges and universities to allow guns, including concealed handguns, on campuses would lead to an increase in gun homicides, suicides and gun thefts, according to a new report from the Brady Centre. Currently, colleges and universities can choose to be gun-free, regardless of the state law. The legislation is proposed by the gun lobby, which says arming staff and students will prevent further school shootings similar to those at Virginia Tech and Columbine. But the Brady report argues the carrying of concealed weapons would create a serious threat, because of the prevalence of drug and alcohol use among students and the link between substance abuse and acts of violence in un-carrying adolescents. The report says many of the 24,000 suicide attempts made by American students each year would result in fatalities if guns were on campus. Read more here.

Other news

• The EU Code of Conduct has not reduced European small arms exports to countries with a poor record on human rights, according a new report from the Institute of Peace Research and Security Policy at the University of Hamburg. The study analysed the exports of Belgium, Germany and Italy. Read more here.
• A team of IANSA Women's Network members have arrived in New York to participate in events during the annual UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). Marie-Claire Ruhamya from the UK Platform of Congolese women spoke on the role of women's rights organisations in conflict at the Open Society Institute. Read more here.
• The March bulletin from Oxfam West Africa reports on the annual regional Control Arms meeting in Mali, FOSDA's Work Focus Discussion project and a WANEP visit to Sierra Leone. Read more here.

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