Dear friend,

Hundreds have been killed in Libya, with Colonel Gaddafi’s armed forces reportedly using machine gun fire to brutally suppress protesters. But while global leaders have been quick to call for an arms embargo on Libya, governments have been arming Gaddafi’s forces with lethal weaponry for years.

In fact, before Sunday's UN embargo, selling arms to Libya was completely legal under international law. Why? Global arms sales are a $400+ billion dollar a year industry [1] – and a lot of wealthy people stand to lose out if governments are held accountable for the weapons they sell.

United Nations delegates are meeting this week in New York to negotiate a global Arms Trade Treaty -- let’s make sure the profits of arms sales are not put above human lives:

Send a clear message to the UN and demand a comprehensive Arms Trade Treaty to stop governments arming dictators and despots.

Like Libya, we know countless other countries have similarly been armed by foreign governments who should know better. The UK government has licensed $109.4 million worth of military and security equipment to Libya, including armoured vehicles, small arms, ammunition, crowd control equipment and tear gas – in addition to military supplies to Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Oman, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates [2].

While international treaties regulate the sale of dinosaur bones and postage stamps, there is still no binding international law to regulate the sale of deadly weapons that fuel war and conflict.

Prevent tomorrow’s atrocities; stop the hypocrisy of governments and demand a comprehensive global Arms Trade Treaty.

As Amnesty supporters, this is what we stand for – not only urgent reactions to human rights crises, but ensuring atrocities are avoided in future. Please join our supporters around the world putting their name to this call.

In solidarity,

Jenny Leong
Crisis Response Campaign Coordinator

[1] Top global arms industry increases arms sales despite ongoing recession, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, 21 February 2011.

[2] UK Government licensing database, Strategic Export Controls.