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Global legislators group hopes for arms trade treaty

WELLINGTON, July 31 (Xinhua) -- The New Zealand head of an international group of legislators said Tuesday he still had hope for a "robust" arms trade treaty (ATT) despite the failure of a four-week United Nations conference to agree on a final text.

The fact that a group of more than 90 UN member states had issued a joint statement pointing out they were "determined to secure an arms trade treaty as soon as possible" reinforced the hope, said Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) president Ross Robertson.

"While some delegations didn't like the draft, the overwhelming majority in the room did. Those countries are now actively exploring other options to put the ATT back on the table within the next four to six months," Robertson said in a statement.

"Some 2,097 parliamentarians from 113 countries have signed the Control Arms Global Parliamentary Declaration on the ATT. Many attribute the inability to achieve consensus to a lack of leadership in certain countries," he said.

"Over 50,000 people worldwide lost their lives to armed violence over the course of the ATT Conference. What greater motivation do we need to act quickly and decisively to make this Treaty a reality?"said Robertson, who is also associate spokesperson for disarmament for New Zealand's main opposition Labour Party.

On Sunday, New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully said he was disappointed that it was not possible "to bridge the entrenched positions on some issues."

Differences remained about exactly what sorts of weapons should be in the treaty, McCully said.

New Zealand was active in the negotiations, pushing for a treaty with the highest possible standards covering bullets to battleships, and had joined the group of 90 countries calling for negotiations to begin again soon.

Negotiations were expected to resume at the UN General Assembly in October. Enditem

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