Does this include visitors firearms or residents of the countries or Professional Hunters? The article states "those used by individuals".



All firearms to be marked
By Dominic Nkolimwa

2nd July 2010



Countries in the Great Lakes and Horn of Africa bordering regions have decided to mark all firearms used in their nations in a broader and strategic drive to control internal and international crimes.

The exercise would include all arms used by government departments and units the army, police, prisons and related institutions, and those used by individuals, Deputy Commissioner of Police Nestory Mpembela said in Dar es Salaam yesterday.

He was addressing an international meeting on arms and light weapons data-base validation.

It would be implemented under the umbrella of the Regional Centre for Small Arms in the Great Lakes Region, the Horn of Africa and Bordering States (RESCA).

In the implementation process, the countries are expected to introduce software database validation for all arms used in a given country, (to differ from one country to another) in order to simplify the arms identification.

Commissioner Mpembela said unmarked weapons and arms posed a big threat to international peace, security and stability in Africa.

He said proliferation and illicit trade in small arms and weapons posed many serious challenges in the regions, adding that it was a multifaceted scourge that negatively affected all aspects of human society, security and civilisation.

“It is unfortunate that the Great Lakes and Horn of Africa region is one of the most affected by problems associated with illicit trade in fire arms, something which threatens social progress,” the DCP said.

The fire arms data base, he said, would be an effective instrument to facilitate firearms marking, record keeping and tracing.

“In this context, we will have, at our finger-tips, all particulars of firearms, making it easier to trace them,” he noted.

He described the meeting as an important forum for stakeholders to meet and brainstorm on the best and effective mechanisms to combat the illicit arms and cross-border trade and international crimes in their regions.

For his part, the Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Lutenta Mwauzi, said the arm marking exercise was part of the implementation of United Nations, Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and Nairobi protocols. According to Mwauzi, the protocols were legally binding documents.

He said political instability and crimes in countries such as Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania were largely fueled by illegal importation and exportation of fire arms.

“According to our reports, Kagera and Kigoma regions have many illegally owned fire arms. These arms are imported by some refugees,” ACP Mwauzi said.

RECSA executive secretary Francis Sang said during the firearm marking exercise, all legal arms traders will also be marked. Arms manufacturers will have special marks according to the country where they are coming from.

He said the arms-marking programme would help to combat crimes, because it will be very easy to know the nation possessing the kind of weapon used in any crime. This would make it easy for governments to identify the weapons, crime suspects and take actions.

“This programme is scientific, and will involve introduction of software database for recording and storing information on all arms available in a region,” Sang said.


SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN

Great. All the shuftas and various bandits have to report to the local police station to have their AK47s marked and registered on a computer.

This will stop armed raids dead in their tracks.

How did we not think of it earlier???

Genius.

The mind boggles...

Yeah, I wanta see the guy who's gonna enter the eastern DRC and tell the militias and the LRA they have to register their arms...

It's a shame that the greatest crimes are committed by the very governments party to this proposal.

Registering all government employees and making senior government officials wear tracking collars would be far more effective deterrent to criminal activity.