What is the Latin American Arms Treaty?

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Tim James

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Could someone provide some tech on what this involves? The news outlets haven't gotten around to analyzing it and I couldn't find anything on the web or Wikipedia. Apparently Clinton signed it but it was never ratified. Not interested in the politics, just the details behind it.
 
It appears that the official name of the treaty is the "INTER-AMERICAN CONVENTION AGAINST THE ILLICIT MANUFACTURING OF AND TRAFFICKING IN FIREARMS, AMMUNITION, EXPLOSIVES, AND OTHER RELATED MATERIALS"


Here is a link to the treaty, as it looks like it would be too big to post:
http://www.oas.org/juridico/English/treaties/a-63.html

I've only skimmed it but at first glance, as far as our rights are concerned there can be nothing good that comes from this. We need to make sure it isn't ratified by the Congress. Time to light up the phones of your legislators.
 
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Looks like most of what is in there is already in place in US laws.

The scary part is the "information sharing and cooperation" requirements as well as the "tracking" stuff.

Looks like a way to de facto gun registration.

It also contains a section on the importing of arms and ammo. Might be a way to kill off ammo imports to the US.

Nothing but restating of existing laws and bad news.

I don't see a single thing in there that will actually help the problem, if in fact there IS a problem (which I still doubt).
 
I just came here to ask the same thing. There is a new article in the NYT about this. But in what I consider even-worse-than-usual reporting, they don't name the treaty and they bother to report what it does specifically.

What does it do specifically? I guess I will have to follow the prior link and see for myself...

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/17/world/americas/17prexy.html?_r=1&hp

Obama to Push to Ratify Treaty on Gun Trafficking

MEXICO CITY — President Obama, seeking to send a strong signal that he is committed to stopping the rising tide of cross-border drug violence, will announce on Thursday that he is pressing the Senate to ratify a decade-old arms treaty intended to curb the flow of guns and ammunition to drug cartels, a senior administration official said.

Mr. Obama, on his first trip to Latin America as president, landed in Mexico City on Thursday afternoon. His agenda will include the economy, immigration and a trade-related dispute between the two countries over whether Mexican trucks can travel American roads, but the dominating issue is drug violence.

The treaty was negotiated by the Organization of American States and signed by former President Clinton, but was never ratified by the Congress. In announcing his support for it, Mr. Obama is seeking to strengthen the efforts of Mexico President Felipe Calderón, who has made fighting drug cartels a centerpiece of his domestic policy. The treaty went into effect in 1998.

“The president felt it was important to push now for the ratification of the treaty because the question of illegal arms trafficking is of great concern,” the senior official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because Mr. Obama had not yet made the announcement. “The president believes that taking the necessary steps to ratify conveys our commitment to addressing this challenge.”

The official said Mr. Obama would announce his backing of the treaty after meeting with Mr. Calderón. News of the pending announcement first appeared on The Washington Post Web site.

Since taking office, Mr. Obama and his aides have been working assiduously to carve out a Mexico policy that talks of “shared responsibility” in combating the drug problem. On Wednesday, the Obama administration announced stiff financial sanctions against members of three more Mexican drug cartels, designating them “kingpins” under a law that allows the American government to seize their assets.

The president is likely to use his visit here to acknowledge that illicit drug consumption by Americans plays a role — an admission that experts predict will go a long way toward building goodwill on this side of the border.

In words that resounded on both sides of the border, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said in Mexico City last month that America’s “insatiable demand” for illegal drugs fueled the trade and that America “inability” to stop weapons from being smuggled south fed the violence. It is a marked shift in tone from previous administrations.

“For the last 30 years the United States has come down with the big sticks of eradication and helicopters, and the elephant in the room of our own consumption, and the tough proliferation of arms, were just never addressed,” said Julia E. Sweig, director of the Latin America program at the Council on Foreign Relations. “I think just beginning to talk about those things is going to buy him a lot of space down there.”

The drug violence is so intense here that in December, a Pentagon report warned that Mexico could be on the verge of becoming a failed state. Mr. Calderón dismissed that assertion in an interview with the ABC News program “Nightline” on Wednesday in which he also put some of the blame for Mexico’s problem on gun sales in the United States and demand for drugs there.

Mr. Obama comes here fresh from a much-publicized swing through Europe that put him squarely on the world stage. The Latin America trip, which will include a visit to Trinidad and Tobago, may not be as high profile; for one thing, First Lady Michelle Obama, who added a touch of pizzazz to the Europe trip, stayed back in Washington. But the president has made repairing relations with world leaders a signature of his foreign policy, and the visit is designed to give him a chance to do that in a region with which he is less familiar.

Mr. Obama will spend the night in Mexico before leaving for Port of Spain, Trinidad, to attend a gathering of leaders of Western Hemisphere nations.

Cuba is likely to be high on the agenda there. The White House announced earlier this week that Mr. Obama is lifting longstanding restrictions on travel and remittances to the island, but some Latin American leaders want him to do more.

In Mexico, Mr. Obama hopes to spotlight the historically close ties between the two nations. His visit comes at a difficult time for Mexico; in addition to being racked by drug violence, the nation is reeling from the effects of the worldwide economic downtown. Mexico is a major trading partner of the United States, especially since the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement, and is feeling powerful ripples from the American recession.

The trip comes on the heels of a string of high-profile visits by administration officials. Along with Mrs. Clinton, Attorney General Eric Holder and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano have all been to Mexico since Mr. Obama took office. Ms. Napolitano, who is with the president, announced that the administration would move hundreds of federal agents to the 2,000-mile border, and pledged to focus more efforts on stopping the flow of money and weapons from the United States into Mexico.

The president’s visit, though, takes the effort to a new level. That Mr. Obama is visiting the capital is particularly significant, said Andrew Selee, director of the Mexico Institute at the Woodrow Wilson Center, a policy organization in Washington. Other leaders have visited Mexican resort communities, but Mr. Selee said Mr. Obama “really wanted to be seen going to the heart of the country, where the people are.”

This will not be Mr. Obama’s first meeting with Mr. Calderón; the two met in Washington shortly before Mr. Obama’s inauguration. Thursday’s visit will no doubt include a discussion of a sore point between their two nations: the refusal by the United States to allow Mexican trucks to travel inside the United States. That kind of truck traffic is supposed to be permitted under the North American Free Trade Agreement, but Congress has long objected, contending Mexican trucks pose a safety hazard — a contention that critics say stems from pressure by the Teamsters’ Union.

A pilot project allowing some Mexican trucks to make cross-border deliveries was recently suspended by Congress. An international arbitrator has ruled in Mexico’s favor, and Mr. Obama has acknowledged that the United States is in violation of its NAFTA obligations.

But whether the issue will be resolved while Mr. Obama is here remains unclear. “I’m not promising an agreement, I’m not suggesting there won’t be an agreement,” Denis McDonough, senior director for strategic communications on the National Security Council, told reporters Tuesday evening, while the president was still in Washington He added: “We’re aggressively working it and when we get an agreement we’ll announce it.”
 
This may sound stupid, but how much 'illicit' manufacturing really does go on? (within the United States) I mean sure, one could argue there is a certain amount of illicit activity and application, but within the US how many illegal makers can there be?
 
This may sound stupid, but how much 'illicit' manufacturing really does go on? (within the United States) I mean sure, one could argue there is a certain amount of illicit activity and application, but within the US how many illegal makers can there be?

In America, very little, other than some illegal full-auto conversions which could be considered "manufacturing". And we know .gov does its darndest to make sure that does not happen even without a new treaty. What's the point in illegal manufacture when illegal theft is easier?
 
An alternate link: http://www.state.gov/p/wha/rls/49907.htm

I can't see anything in the treaty that isn't already codified in US law.

The scary part is the "information sharing and cooperation" requirements as well as the "tracking" stuff.

Looks like a way to de facto gun registration.
I can't see that. I read the document to address export/import licenses and tracking - not traffic within the country prior to export/import.

Dunno. I sure ain't a lawyer. :)
 
I can't see that. I read the document to address export/import licenses and tracking - not traffic within the country prior to export/import.

I agree as it's written, but I can see the current powers wanting to "make things easier" by fiddling with the paper trails.

Paranoid? Maybe I am a little, justifiably so I think.

I just don't see what ratifying this treaty would do that we already don't do.
 
ARTICLE VI
Marking of Firearms

1. For the purposes of identification and tracing of the firearms referred to in Article I.3.a, States Parties shall:

a. require, at the time of manufacture, appropriate markings of the name of manufacturer, place of manufacture, and serial number;


What if I make my own, for my own use? I'm not currently required to mark anything.
 
From The Washington Post:

In addition to making illegal the unauthorized manufacture and exporting of firearms, the treaty calls for countries to adopt strict licensing requirements, mark firearms when they are made and imported to make them easier to trace, and establish a cooperative process for sharing information between national law-enforcement agencies investigating arms smuggling.

This is not good, IMO
 
the sky is falling, the sky is falling!!!:rolleyes:

this targets illicit manufacturers and manufacturers in other countries. The US has pretty strict licensing procedures already in place for domestic manufacturers otherwise the administration would had cleaned house on the home front first.
 
the sky is falling, the sky is falling!!!

this targets illicit manufacturers and manufacturers in other countries. The US has pretty strict licensing procedures already in place for domestic manufacturers otherwise the administration would had cleaned house on the home front first.

If there is nothing to this why has the treaty not been ratified? Clinton signed it and it's been sitting there unratified ever since.

If it's harmless, why is that?
 
Here's a link to the text of the treaty:

http://www.oas.org/juridico/English/treaties/a-63.html

Now for the part that makes me nervous right away:

Article I
Definitions

For the purposes of this Convention, the following definitions shall apply:

1. "Illicit manufacturing": the manufacture or assembly of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials:

a. from components or parts illicitly trafficked; or

b. without a license from a competent governmental authority of the State Party where the manufacture or assembly takes place;
or

c. without marking the firearms that require marking at the time of manufacturing.

Reloading in your garage without a license would be "illicit manufacturing". That's only one of the many abominations in this piece of garbage.

Hmm, watch out, that piece of "sky" that's falling is liable to knock your head off.

Full text:

INTER-AMERICAN CONVENTION AGAINST THE ILLICIT MANUFACTURING OF AND TRAFFICKING IN FIREARMS, AMMUNITION, EXPLOSIVES, AND OTHER RELATED MATERIALS

THE STATES PARTIES,

AWARE of the urgent need to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials, due to the harmful effects of these activities on the security of each state and the region as a whole, endangering the well-being of peoples, their social and economic development, and their right to live in peace;

CONCERNED by the increase, at the international level, in the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials and by the serious problems resulting therefrom;

REAFFIRMING that States Parties give priority to preventing, combating, and eradicating the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials because of the links of such activities with drug trafficking, terrorism, transnational organized crime, and mercenary and other criminal activities;

CONCERNED about the illicit manufacture of explosives from substances and articles that in and of themselves are not explosives--and that are not addressed by this Convention due to their other lawful uses--for activities related to drug trafficking, terrorism, transnational organized crime and mercenary and other criminal activities;

CONSIDERING the urgent need for all states, and especially those states that produce, export, and import arms, to take the necessary measures to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials;

CONVINCED that combating the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials calls for international cooperation, exchange of information, and other appropriate measures at the national, regional, and international levels, and desiring to set a precedent for the international community in this regard;

STRESSING the need, in peace processes and post-conflict situations, to achieve effective control of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials in order to prevent their entry into the illicit market;

MINDFUL of the pertinent resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly on measures to eradicate the illicit transfer of conventional weapons and on the need for all states to guarantee their security, and of the efforts carried out in the framework of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD);

RECOGNIZING the importance of strengthening existing international law enforcement support mechanisms such as the International Weapons and Explosives Tracking System (IWETS) of the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials;

RECOGNIZING that international trade in firearms is particularly vulnerable to abuses by criminal elements and that a "know-your-customer" policy for dealers in, and producers, exporters, and importers of, firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials is crucial for combating this scourge;

RECOGNIZING that states have developed different cultural and historical uses for firearms, and that the purpose of enhancing international cooperation to eradicate illicit transnational trafficking in firearms is not intended to discourage or diminish lawful leisure or recreational activities such as travel or tourism for sport shooting, hunting, and other forms of lawful ownership and use recognized by the States Parties;

RECALLING that States Parties have their respective domestic laws and regulations in the areas of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials, and recognizing that this Convention does not commit States Parties to enact legislation or regulations pertaining to firearms ownership, possession, or trade of a wholly domestic character, and recognizing that States Parties will apply their respective laws and regulations in a manner consistent with this Convention;

REAFFIRMING the principles of sovereignty, nonintervention, and the juridical equality of states,

HAVE DECIDED TO ADOPT THIS INTER-AMERICAN CONVENTION AGAINST THE ILLICIT MANUFACTURING OF AND TRAFFICKING IN FIREARMS, AMMUNITION, EXPLOSIVES, AND OTHER RELATED MATERIALS:

Article I
Definitions

For the purposes of this Convention, the following definitions shall apply:

1. "Illicit manufacturing": the manufacture or assembly of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials:

a. from components or parts illicitly trafficked; or

b. without a license from a competent governmental authority of the State Party where the manufacture or assembly takes place; or

c. without marking the firearms that require marking at the time of manufacturing.

2. "Illicit trafficking": the import, export, acquisition, sale, delivery, movement, or transfer of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials from or across the territory of one State Party to that of another State Party, if any one of the States Parties concerned does not authorize it.

3. "Firearms":

a. any barreled weapon which will or is designed to or may be readily converted to expel a bullet or projectile by the action of an explosive, except antique firearms manufactured before the 20th Century or their replicas; or

b. any other weapon or destructive device such as any explosive, incendiary or gas bomb, grenade, rocket, rocket launcher, missile, missile system, or mine.

4. "Ammunition": the complete round or its components, including cartridge cases, primers, propellant powder, bullets, or projectiles that are used in any firearm.

5. "Explosives": any substance or article that is made, manufactured, or used to produce an explosion, detonation, or propulsive or pyrotechnic effect, except:

a. substances and articles that are not in and of themselves explosive; or

b. substances and articles listed in the Annex to this Convention.

6. "Other related materials": any component, part, or replacement part of a firearm, or an accessory which can be attached to a firearm.

7. "Controlled delivery": the technique of allowing illicit or suspect consignments of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials to pass out of, through, or into the territory of one or more states, with the knowledge and under the supervision of their competent authorities, with a view to identifying persons involved in the commission of offenses referred to in Article IV of this Convention.

Article II
Purpose

The purpose of this Convention is:

to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials;

to promote and facilitate cooperation and exchange of information and experience among States Parties to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials.

Article III
Sovereignty

1. States Parties shall carry out the obligations under this Convention in a manner consistent with the principles of sovereign equality and territorial integrity of states and that of nonintervention in the domestic affairs of other states.

2. A State Party shall not undertake in the territory of another State Party the exercise of jurisdiction and performance of functions which are exclusively reserved to the authorities of that other State Party by its domestic law.

Article IV
Legislative Measures

1. States Parties that have not yet done so shall adopt the necessary legislative or other measures to establish as criminal offenses under their domestic law the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials.

2. Subject to the respective constitutional principles and basic concepts of the legal systems of the States Parties, the criminal offenses established pursuant to the foregoing paragraph shall include participation in, association or conspiracy to commit, attempts to commit, and aiding, abetting, facilitating, and counseling the commission of said offenses.

Article V
Jurisdiction

1. Each State Party shall adopt such measures as may be necessary to establish its jurisdiction over the offenses it has established in accordance with this Convention when the offense in question is committed in its territory.

2. Each State Party may adopt such measures as may be necessary to establish its jurisdiction over the offenses it has established in accordance with this Convention when the offense is committed by one of its nationals or by a person who habitually resides in its territory.

3. Each State Party shall adopt such measures as may be necessary to establish its jurisdiction over the offenses it has established in accordance with this Convention when the alleged criminal is present in its territory and it does not extradite such person to another country on the ground of the nationality of the alleged criminal.

4. This Convention does not preclude the application of any other rule of criminal jurisdiction established by a State Party under its domestic law.

Article VI
Marking of Firearms

1. For the purposes of identification and tracing of the firearms referred to in Article I.3.a, States Parties shall:

a. require, at the time of manufacture, appropriate markings of the name of manufacturer, place of manufacture, and serial number;

b. require appropriate markings on imported firearms permitting the identification of the importer's name and address; and

c. require appropriate markings on any firearms confiscated or forfeited pursuant to Article VII.1 that are retained for official use.

2. The firearms referred to in Article I.3.b should be marked appropriately at the time of manufacture, if possible.

Article VII
Confiscation or Forfeiture

1. States Parties undertake to confiscate or forfeit firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials that have been illicitly manufactured or trafficked.

2. States Parties shall adopt the necessary measures to ensure that all firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials seized, confiscated, or forfeited as the result of illicit manufacturing or trafficking do not fall into the hands of private individuals or businesses through auction, sale, or other disposal.

Article VIII
Security Measures

States Parties, in an effort to eliminate loss or diversion, undertake to adopt the necessary measures to ensure the security of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials imported into, exported from, or in transit through their respective territories.

Article IX
Export, Import, and Transit Licenses or Authorizations

1. States Parties shall establish or maintain an effective system of export, import, and international transit licenses or authorizations for transfers of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials.

2. States Parties shall not permit the transit of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials until the receiving State Party issues the corresponding license or authorization.

3. States Parties, before releasing shipments of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials for export, shall ensure that the importing and in-transit countries have issued the necessary licenses or authorizations.

4. The importing State Party shall inform the exporting State Party, upon request, of the receipt of dispatched shipments of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials.

Article X
Strengthening of Controls at Export Points

Each State Party shall adopt such measures as may be necessary to detect and prevent illicit trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials between its territory and that of other States Parties, by strengthening controls at export points.

Article XI
Recordkeeping

States Parties shall assure the maintenance for a reasonable time of the information necessary to trace and identify illicitly manufactured and illicitly trafficked firearms to enable them to comply with their obligations under Articles XIII and XVII.

Article XII
Confidentiality

Subject to the obligations imposed by their Constitutions or any international agreements, the States Parties shall guarantee the confidentiality of any information they receive, if requested to do so by the State Party providing the information. If for legal reasons such confidentiality cannot be maintained, the State Party that provided the information shall be notified prior to its disclosure.

Article XIII
Exchange of Information

1. States Parties shall exchange among themselves, in conformity with their respective domestic laws and applicable treaties, relevant information on matters such as:

a. authorized producers, dealers, importers, exporters, and, whenever possible, carriers of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials;

b. the means of concealment used in the illicit manufacturing of or trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials, and ways of detecting them;

c. routes customarily used by criminal organizations engaged in illicit trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials;

d. legislative experiences, practices, and measures to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials; and

e. techniques, practices, and legislation to combat money laundering related to illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials.

2. States Parties shall provide to and share with each other, as appropriate, relevant scientific and technological information useful to law enforcement, so as to enhance one another's ability to prevent, detect, and investigate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials and prosecute those involved therein.

3. States Parties shall cooperate in the tracing of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials which may have been illicitly manufactured or trafficked. Such cooperation shall include accurate and prompt responses to trace requests.

Article XIV
Cooperation

1. States Parties shall cooperate at the bilateral, regional, and international levels to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials.

2. States Parties shall identify a national body or a single point of contact to act as liaison among States Parties, as well as between them and the Consultative Committee established in Article XX, for purposes of cooperation and information exchange.

Article XV
Exchange of Experience and Training

1. States Parties shall cooperate in formulating programs for the exchange of experience and training among competent officials, and shall provide each other assistance that would facilitate their respective access to equipment or technology proven to be effective for the implementation of this Convention.

2. States Parties shall cooperate with each other and with competent international organizations, as appropriate, to ensure that there is adequate training of personnel in their territories to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials. The subject matters of such training shall include, inter alia:

a. identification and tracing of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials;

b. intelligence gathering, especially that which relates to identification of illicit manufacturers and traffickers, methods of shipment, and means of concealment of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials; and

c. improvement of the efficiency of personnel responsible for searching for and detecting, at conventional and nonconventional points of entry and exit, illicitly trafficked firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials.

Article XVI
Technical Assistance

States Parties shall cooperate with each other and with relevant international organizations, as appropriate, so that States Parties that so request receive the technical assistance necessary to enhance their ability to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials, including technical assistance in those matters identified in Article XV.2.
 
The rest of the text:

Article XVII
Mutual Legal Assistance

1. States Parties shall afford one another the widest measure of mutual legal assistance, in conformity with their domestic law and applicable treaties, by promptly and accurately processing and responding to requests from authorities which, in accordance with their domestic law, have the power to investigate or prosecute the illicit activities described in this Convention, in order to obtain evidence and take other necessary action to facilitate procedures and steps involved in such investigations or prosecutions.

2. For purposes of mutual legal assistance under this article, each Party may designate a central authority or may rely upon such central authorities as are provided for in any relevant treaties or other agreements. The central authorities shall be responsible for making and receiving requests for mutual legal assistance under this article, and shall communicate directly with each other for the purposes of this article.

Article XVIII
Controlled Delivery

1. Should their domestic legal systems so permit, States Parties shall take the necessary measures, within their possibilities, to allow for the appropriate use of controlled delivery at the international level, on the basis of agreements or arrangements mutually consented to, with a view to identifying persons involved in the offenses referred to in Article IV and to taking legal action against them.

2. Decisions by States Parties to use controlled delivery shall be made on a case-by-case basis and may, when necessary, take into consideration financial arrangements and understandings with respect to the exercise of jurisdiction by the States Parties concerned.

3. With the consent of the States Parties concerned, illicit consignments under controlled delivery may be intercepted and allowed to continue with the firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials intact or removed or replaced in whole or in part.

Article XIX
Extradition

1. This article shall apply to the offenses referred to in Article IV of this Convention.

2. Each of the offenses to which this article applies shall be deemed to be included as an extraditable offense in any extradition treaty in force between or among the States Parties. The States Parties undertake to include such offenses as extraditable offenses in every extradition treaty to be concluded between or among them.

3. If a State Party that makes extradition conditional on the existence of a treaty receives a request for extradition from another State Party with which it does not have an extradition treaty, it may consider this Convention as the legal basis for extradition with respect to any offense to which this article applies.

4. States Parties that do not make extradition conditional on the existence of a treaty shall recognize offenses to which this article applies as extraditable offenses between themselves.

5. Extradition shall be subject to the conditions provided for by the law of the Requested State or by applicable extradition treaties, including the grounds on which the Requested State may refuse extradition.

6. If extradition for an offense to which this article applies is refused solely on the basis of the nationality of the person sought, the Requested State Party shall submit the case to its competent authorities for the purpose of prosecution under the criteria, laws, and procedures applied by the Requested State to those offenses when they are committed in its own territory. The Requested and Requesting States Parties may, in accordance with their domestic laws, agree otherwise in relation to any prosecution referred to in this paragraph.

Article XX
Establishment and Functions of the Consultative Committee

1. In order to attain the objectives of this Convention, the States Parties shall establish a Consultative Committee responsible for:

a. promoting the exchange of information contemplated under this Convention;

b. facilitating the exchange of information on domestic legislation and administrative procedures of the States Parties;

c. encouraging cooperation between national liaison authorities to detect suspected illicit exports and imports of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials;

d. promoting training and exchange of knowledge and experience among States Parties and technical assistance between States Parties and relevant international organizations, as well as academic studies;

e. requesting from nonparty states, when appropriate, information on the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials; and

f. promoting measures to facilitate the application of this Convention.

2. Decisions of the Consultative Committee shall be recommendatory in nature.

3. The Consultative Committee shall maintain the confidentiality of any information it receives in the exercise of its functions, if requested to do so.

Article XXI
Structure and Meetings of the Consultative Committee

1. The Consultative Committee shall consist of one representative of each State Party.

2. The Consultative Committee shall hold one regular meeting each year and shall hold special meetings as necessary.

3. The first regular meeting of the Consultative Committee shall be held within 90 days following deposit of the 10th instrument of ratification of this Convention. This meeting shall be held at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States, unless a State Party has offered to host it.

4. The meetings of the Consultative Committee shall be held at a place decided upon by the States Parties at the previous regular meeting. If no offer of a site has been made, the Consultative Committee shall meet at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States.

5. The host State Party for each regular meeting shall serve as Secretariat pro tempore of the Consultative Committee until the next regular meeting. When a regular meeting is held at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States, a State Party that will serve as Secretariat pro tempore shall be elected at that meeting.

6. In consultation with the States Parties, the Secretariat pro tempore shall be responsible for:

a. convening regular and special meetings of the Consultative Committee;

b. preparing a draft agenda for the meetings; and

c. preparing the draft reports and minutes of the meetings.

7. The Consultative Committee shall prepare its own internal rules of procedure and shall adopt them by absolute majority.

Article XXII
Signature

This Convention is open for signature by member states of the Organization of American States.

Article XXIII
Ratification

This Convention is subject to ratification. The instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States.

Article XXIV
Reservations

States Parties may, at the time of adoption, signature, or ratification, make reservations to this Convention, provided that said reservations are not incompatible with the object and purposes of the Convention and that they concern one or more specific provisions thereof.

Article XXV
Entry into Force

This Convention shall enter into force on the 30th day following the date of deposit of the second instrument of ratification. For each state ratifying the Convention after the deposit of the second instrument of ratification, the Convention shall enter into force on the 30th day following deposit by such state of its instrument of ratification.

Article XXVI
Denunciation

1. This Convention shall remain in force indefinitely, but any State Party may denounce it. The instrument of denunciation shall be deposited with the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States. After six months from the date of deposit of the instrument of denunciation, the Convention shall no longer be in force for the denouncing State, but shall remain in force for the other States Parties.

2. The denunciation shall not affect any requests for information or assistance made during the time the Convention is in force for the denouncing State.

Article XXVII
Other Agreements and Practices

1. No provision in this Convention shall be construed as preventing the States Parties from engaging in mutual cooperation within the framework of other existing or future international, bilateral, or multilateral agreements, or of any other applicable arrangements or practices.

2. States Parties may adopt stricter measures than those provided for by this Convention if, in their opinion, such measures are desirable to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials.

Article XXVIII
Conference of States Parties

Five years after the entry into force of this Convention, the depository shall convene a conference of the States Parties to examine the functioning and application of this Convention. Each conference shall determine the date on which the next conference should be held.

Article XXIX
Dispute Settlement

Any dispute that may arise as to the application or interpretation of this Convention shall be resolved through diplomatic channels or, failing which, by any other means of peaceful settlement decided upon by the States Parties involved. Article XXX Deposit

The original instrument of this Convention, the English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish texts of which are equally authentic, shall be deposited with the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States, which shall forward an authenticated copy of its text to the Secretariat of the United Nations for registration and publication, in accordance with Article 102 of the United Nations Charter. The General Secretariat of the Organization of American States shall notify the member states of the Organization of the signatures, of the deposits of instruments of ratification and denunciation, and of any reservations.

ANNEX

The term "explosives" does not include: compressed gases; flammable liquids; explosive actuated devices, such as air bags and fire extinguishers; propellant actuated devices, such as nail gun cartridges; consumer fireworks suitable for use by the public and designed primarily to produce visible or audible effects by combustion, that contain pyrotechnic compositions and that do not project or disperse dangerous fragments such as metal, glass, or brittle plastic; toy plastic or paper caps for toy pistols; toy propellant devices consisting of small paper or composition tubes or containers containing a small charge or slow burning propellant powder designed so that they will neither burst nor produce external flame except through the nozzle on functioning; and smoke candles, smokepots, smoke grenades, smoke signals, signal flares, hand signal devices, and Very signal cartridges designed to produce visible effects for signal purposes containing smoke compositions and no bursting charges.
 
sacp81170a gets the gold star!

The adoption of this treaty will make reloading your own ammo without a government issued license illegal.
 
Actually, I think we're not bad off. Heller applies in full strength. See Article IV, Paragraph 2. Boldface added.

"Article IV
Legislative Measures

1. States Parties that have not yet done so shall adopt the necessary legislative or other measures to establish as criminal offenses under their domestic law the illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials.

2. Subject to the respective constitutional principles and basic concepts of the legal systems of the States Parties, the criminal offenses established pursuant to the foregoing paragraph shall include participation in, association or conspiracy to commit, attempts to commit, and aiding, abetting, facilitating, and counseling the commission of said offenses."
 
Yes, now I'm curious how much wiggle room there typically exists in these treaties within a particular country domestically.

Anyway, thanks for the info. It's something to at least keep an eye on, because a trafficking treaty didn't seem harmful at first glance.
 
Please, read the proposed treaty before then posting wild assumptions........

The document starts off as

For the purposes of this Convention, the following definitions shall apply:

1. "Illicit manufacturing": the manufacture or assembly of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials:

a. from components or parts illicitly trafficked; or

b. without a license from a competent governmental authority of the State Party where the manufacture or assembly takes place; or

c. without marking the firearms that require marking at the time of manufacturing.

2. "Illicit trafficking": the import, export, acquisition, sale, delivery, movement, or transfer of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials from or across the territory of one State Party to that of another State Party, if any one of the States Parties concerned does not authorize it.


There is NO licensing for reloading unless you have stolen the components, in which case applying for a licence to manufacture is a classic example for a winner of the Darwin awards.

There are NO changes to the current requirement guidance from the ATF if you build your own firearms.

Exchange of information ALREADY occurs, how many have been screaming about the "90% guns are from the US" figures mouthed in the media, the information came from information exchanged.

On that the note, the actual original finding was not that 90% of seized firearms came from US, it was 90% of the pre-filtered, small number of serial numbers provided to the ATF by the Mexican government could be traced to the US.
 
Well, all I see is the word "or" at the end of those sentences. Maybe I can't read lawyer. There could still be many exceptions, which is why I wondered out loud about it.
 
There is NO licensing for reloading unless you have stolen the components

That's not how it reads to me.

Read it again, look carefully at the 'or's. Leaving out section a, since there is an "or" results in this sentence:

"Illicit manufacturing": the manufacture or assembly of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials without a license from a competent governmental authority of the State Party where the manufacture or assembly takes place

That means that any ammo manufacture would require a license. I don't see how you can read it any other way.

Nowhere in there does it mention the source of the components etc.
 
This may sound stupid, but how much 'illicit' manufacturing really does go on? (within the United States) I mean sure, one could argue there is a certain amount of illicit activity and application, but within the US how many illegal makers can there be?

Corollary: insofar as there is any such illicit manufacturing and trade, are those engaged in it more afraid of being caught and sent to the Federal pen here in the states (per our existing laws), or are they more afraid that Guatemala will try to prosecute them?

This treaty is silliness, at best. Back-door gun control at worst.
 
This may sound stupid, but how much 'illicit' manufacturing really does go on? (within the United States)

If you define "illicit manufacturing" (which the treaty most definitely does) as manufacturing ammunition without a license, I do it a lot and I have a lot of friends who do it. Look further at the definition of "ammunition":

4. "Ammunition": the complete round or its components, including cartridge cases, primers, propellant powder, bullets, or projectiles that are used in any firearm.

Pretty well sums it up. Even casting bullets for your own use would constitute "illicit manufacturing" if you don't have "a license from a competent governmental authority of the State Party where the manufacture or assembly takes place;".

(ETA: Further thought: "competent governmental authority of the State Party" doesn't mean Illinois or Texas, it means the Fedgov. In effect, the treaty would mandate federal licensing only. Great.)

Armed Bear:

This treaty is silliness, at best. Back-door gun control at worst.

And we certainly trust TPTB to never use it against us, right? Sorry, I don't trust any of 'em.

Corollary: insofar as there is any such illicit manufacturing and trade, are those engaged in it more afraid of being caught and sent to the Federal pen here in the states (per our existing laws), or are they more afraid that Guatemala will try to prosecute them?

That's my point. We already have laws regulating the manufacture of firearms and explosives by private citizens in their sheds, basements and garages, but virtually none on the similar manufacture of common small arms ammo. That's where this treaty hurts us the most.
 
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Illicit manufacture could also be you or I assembling a FAL, AK, or AR rifle on our property with a serialized receiver and then selling it at a gun show, since we are just peons and not "ultra mega-corp arms manufacturer"...

We've seen the ATF home building letters, and with the stroke of a pen, .GOV could have the ATF rescind that and say no more home building.
 
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