19 November 2013, the Government of Guatemala and UNLIREC organized a one-day legal seminar on small arms control in Guatemala City. The seminar was chaired by the Vice-ministry of Violence and Crime Prevention, and counted on the participation of a broad group of institutional stakeholders including the Ministry of Defense, National Civilian Police, Judiciary, Office of the Prosecutor, ministries of Health and Education and the NGO IEPADES.
The seminar was organized to present and disseminate UNLIREC´s legal analysis and recommendations on two bills of law proposed by the Government to address the accumulation of firearms evidence in the judicial system through the advanced destruction of apprehended firearms following ballistic testing, as well as the creation of a legal and policy framework for an eventual voluntary firearms amnesty campaign in the country.
UNLIREC´s expert advice on the bill of law on advanced evidence disposal drew on international instruments related to weapons destruction while the bill for a weapons amnesty drew heavily on ISACS 05.40 ‘Collection of illicit and unwanted small arms.’ UNLIREC´s legal unit was able to undertake this work thanks to the generous contribution of the Governments of Germany and Spain.
For more information about UNLIREC, visit its web page [www.unlirec.com]. For any questions, contact Amanda Cowl, Political Affairs Officer at [cowl@unlirec.org].