JWU Transnational Arms Trafficking Research Paper

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Humanities

Johnson & Wales University

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Transnational Arms Trafficking -

The background regarding the issue, scope of the problem, current control policies, adjudication process, sentencing policies, and a conclusion with suggestions for criminal justice improvements

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Running head: ARMS TRAFFICKING

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Transnational Arms Trafficking Research
Student
Institution
Date

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Background

Reichel and Albanese (2013), have done extensive work in compiling several pieces of
information on international crime. Trafficking is a common word in the current world, and it is
mostly associated with people and drugs, there are very few researches that have documented a
substantial amount of information on this criminal activity. Transnational arms trafficking can be
described as the movement of various weapons across borders using illegal means for various
purposes. The primary purpose of this kind of activity is to propagate terrorism and also to
enhance conflict in certain regions and countries of the world. Several researchers have
concluded that when it comes to transnational and global arms trafficking, it is the small arms
and light weapons (SALW) that get across international borders easily (Dhanapala, Donowaki, &
Lumpe, 2019). Moreover, this kind of activity happens regularly because of its smallness and
difficulty in detection. Most of these crimes go undetected in many nations and in some cases,
they remain of little or no emphasis by governments since they pose very little threat to the
national security of the country. Most nations have been paying attention to cases where the arms
and weapons trafficked are nuclear weapons or that their use could cause catastrophic
consequences to the nations.
Various international bodies have different policies and methods for handling these
issues. Several nations and international bodies have decided to handle trafficking using different
methods like preventing the traffickers from getting in and out of the countries in question
instead of combating the movement of the commodity. Most of these weapons are made and
distributed by governments, and therefore, it is hard to put an end to the same. Transnational
arms trafficking is an issue that involves the government that orders or manufactures the
weapons or gives authorization to private companies to supply the same. Criminal groups around

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the world have thrived on this activity, and most terrorist groups have found ways of acquiring
and using weapons without the blessing and sanctioning by governments (Marsh, 2017). The
character of trafficking over the past few years has been changing with the changes in the visible
efforts by various governments to combat the vice.
Unfortunately, the efforts by various governments to fight this illegal activity have been
watered down by the presence of legally binding international agreements of trade. The only
hope for nations in dealing and eradicating this kind of activity is through international policy.
With the term lacking a simple definition by many nations, the activities remain in the grey, and
they continue to happen despite their bad consequences. It is difficult to decipher whether the
movement of arms between various borders is legal or illegal (Emerson & Solomon, 2018). As a
result of that, the trade has got a lot of airtime and has profited many while driving the agenda of
many people and groups. Transnational arms trafficking is a global problem that if ignored
further, would continue opening the world to unpleasant events while making many states and
their citizens vulnerable. The research paper will be analyzing the scope of the problem of
transnational arms trafficking, the policies that nations and the international community have put
in place to combat the issue, the adjudication process and also policies related to sentencing as
far as this vice is concerned. It will also provide a rich conclusion with several suggestions and
strategies the criminal justice can use to handle the issue.
The Scope of the Problem
The research by many scholars has found that the most common form of transnational
trafficking of arms is SALW. Unfortunately, scholars and organizations around the world do not
have a common definition of SALW. Therefore, to grasp what the illicit trade is all about has
become quite difficult with many scholars citing that some weapons qualify to be included on the

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list and not others. Some of the weapons that have been commonly characterized with SALW
include, very small arms that are meant for personal use like the pistol, all kinds of rifles,
machine guns, both small and light, grenade launchers, mortars, anti-tank weapons, and rocket
launchers among others (Reichel & Albanese, 2013). Despite there not being a standard
definition for the SALW, these weapons are causing international issues and situations around
the world. Some people acquire the arms legally and later on give them out for wrong reasons. In
the last 40 years, SALW has been used for many reasons from armed violence to conflicts in
unstable regions. Researchers around the world estimate the deaths that get caused by these
actions and weapons to about 55,000 people annually (Dhanapala, Donowaki, & Lumpe, 2019).
While the number is an estimate, the real figures cannot be acquired because of the various forms
of legal agreements that control the movement of these arms.
Additionally, the number of deaths that get recorded is that which gets connected to
recent events like terrorism, civil wars, and armed conflict deaths around the world. The report
leaves out several armed groups that are both organized or disorganized that acquire these arms
for illegal activities like trafficking drugs, human, among others (Emerson & Solomon, 2018).
Scholars have found that on several occasions, these organized and unorganized crimes have
caused hundreds of deaths around the world with the examples of Mexico and Brazil
(Dhanapala, Donowaki, & Lumpe, 2019). Several regions around the world are the preferred
destinations for this illegal trade of arms, the Middle East, North Africa, Latin America, and
Eastern Europe. In these regions armed conflict, terrorism and organized crime are prevalent; as
a result of this transitional arms trafficking, the inhuman activities get the room and time to
grow.

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