The fifth edition of the Small Arms Survey
focuses on the direct and indirect role of small arms in contemporary violent
conflicts. It describes the many ways in which small arms and light weapons
threaten human life and well-being in collective violence, while also focusing
how these weapons are implicated in the origins, exacerbation, and aftermath
of violent conflict. The Small Arms Survey: Weapons at War explores these
themes in places such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Indonesia,
Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Sudan, and the former Yugoslavia-where armed conflicts
have formed the backdrop against which efforts to combat the proliferation
and misuse of weapons have unfolded.
The Small Arms Survey 2005 departs from
the format of previous editions by being divided into two sections:
- The first consists of chapters that
(as in previous years) provide new or updated information on global small
arms production, stockpiles, transfers, and international measures. This
year, the Survey includes an introductory overview of small arms ammunition,
an issue receiving growing international attention.
- The second section is dedicated to
issues surrounding armed conflict and its aftermath, including the sourcing
of weapons to violent conflicts, weapons use, small arms and conflict deaths,
and post-conflict disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration. This
section is rounded out with two case studies: one exploring the concept
of "gun culture" in the illustrative case of Kosovo, and another
focusing on the Central African Republic. Between the update and conflict
sections is a survey of contemporary artistic representations of arms and
armed violence.
Produced annually by a team of researchers
based in Switzerland and a worldwide network of local researchers, the
survey seeks to be of use to diplomats, policy-makers, governmental officials
and non-governmental organisations.