一議救萬命: 本週聯合國將舉行“武器貿易條約”投票決議

IT WOULD be a good question for the quiz game Trivial Pursuit. What has the National Rifle Association (NRA), America’s powerful pro-gun lobbying outfit, got in common with Syria, Iran and North Korea? The answer: all are opposed to the global Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) which was overwhelmingly approved by 154 countries on April 2nd by the General Assembly of the United Nations.

對於“打破砂鍋問到底”這個競猜遊戲，這將是一個很好的問題。一個美國強大的親槍遊說機構，美國步槍協會（NRA），與敘利亞、伊朗和朝鮮有何相似之處？答案是：在4月2日的聯合國大會上，由154個國家參與並以壓倒性優勢通過了反對“全球武器貿易條約“（ATT）的決定。

The next stage is for those countries which voted for the treaty to begin formally signing up to it in early June. Each signatory country will then have to ratify it at home. The treaty will come into legal force 90 days after the 50th country has ratified it—perhaps as soon as the end of this year. For some, ratification will be a simple process; for others it could prove harder.

下一個階段是在六月初那些投票支持該條約的國家將正式開始簽署這一協議。屆時各簽字國將在國內批准實行這一協議。該協議將在第50個國家批准後的90後具有法律效力——也許只要今年年底該協議就會生效。對一些國家來說，批准該協議會很簡單；然而對於其他國家卻未必簡單。

The Obama administration is a strong supporter and likely to sign up soon. But getting the two-thirds majority in the Senate needed for ratification will be a struggle, even though the American Bar Association has confirmed the treaty does not infringe any constitutional right to bear arms (as the NRA claims). America’s defence industry also supports it, hoping to bring other countries’ arms exporters closer to the high standards it operates under.

奧巴馬政府是一個強有力的支持者並且很快會簽署。但在參議院要想獲得大多數的認可將是一場鬥爭，儘管美國律師協會（依據NRA的主張）已經證實了該條約不違反憲法中的槍支保有制。美國的國防工業也支持它，希望它能使其他國家的武器出口商在更高的標準下運作。

Whatever difficulties may lie ahead, supporters of the treaty to regulate the $70-billion-a-year trade in arms are jubilant. It is the climax of a campaign that began a decade ago. It had especially strong support from African and Caribbean countries where society has been torn apart by civil war or transnational crime, both stoked by the illicit trade in small arms. The deal involved compromises: for example, a weaker section on munitions. But what a senior diplomat close to the negotiations describes as “the heart” of the treaty—the prohibitions section—is alive and beating.

無論前方遇到什麼困難，該條約的支持者都因控制着每年$70億的軍火貿易而雀躍。這是十年前開始一項運動的高潮。該協議受到非洲和加勒比國家的大力支持，因爲這些國家的社會已經因內戰和跨國犯罪而四分五裂，小型武器的非法貿易更是使社會問題火上澆油。協議的商定採用折中的辦法：例如，淡化了軍需品的規定。但是，正如高級外交官所述協議的“心臟”部分——那些禁止的條約——仍就砰砰的跳動着。

The ATT requires states to establish regulations for arms imports and exports in eight main categories: battle tanks, armoured combat vehicles, large-calibre artillery, combat aircraft, attack helicopters, warships, missiles and missile launchers, and small arms and light weapons. They must assess whether their transfer could lead to serious violations of international humanitarian law, terrorism or organised crime. They must take into account the risk of serious acts of violence against civilians, particularly women and children. An overriding risk of any of these consequences means states must block the deal.

ATT要求各國在8大武器類別上建立進出口管理機制，它們分別是：主戰坦克，裝甲戰車，大口徑火炮，作戰飛機，攻擊直升機，軍艦，導彈和導彈發射器，小武器和輕武器。各進出口國必須評估其轉讓是否會嚴重違反國際人道主義法，和導致恐怖主義或有組織犯罪。他們必須考慮到嚴重的暴力行爲，對平民，特別是婦女和兒童的影像。國家必須制裁任何凌駕於這些風險之上的貿易。

States must also report annually on all their arms transfers to a UN-run “implementation support unit”. The aim is to shine a light on a previously murky business and make governments accountable under the terms of the treaty. The main sanction is embarrassment. That may seem feeble, but previous treaties on landmines and cluster bombs have set a new global norm which makes it shameful to use such weapons indiscriminately.

各國還必須每年向聯合國運行“實施支持單位”報告他們所有的武器交易。目的是讓今日光明的交易形式照耀往日黑暗的交易形式，並且就協議讓政府負責。的主要制裁是尷尬。這可能顯得蒼白無力，但之前有關地雷和集束炸彈條約已經設置了新的全球規範，這使得種武器的濫用變得可恥。

The abstainers include big arms exporters (China and Russia) and importers (India, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Indonesia). But they may sign up later. Russia says it needs more time, while China (surprising some) played a constructive role, apparently influenced by the African countries with which it has forged close commercial ties. Both may find they pay an economic price if their arms industries are increasingly excluded from global supply chains. It will take time for new standards of behaviour to establish themselves, but the push has begun and the treaty can be further strengthened over time. For the moment, says a diplomat involved with the treaty over many years, what has been achieved is “pretty damn good”.

會上的棄權者包括大武器出口國（中國和俄羅斯）和進口商（印度，沙特阿拉伯，埃及和印度尼西亞）。但是，不久他們就會簽字的。俄羅斯說，它需要更多的時間，而中國（不足爲奇了），顯然受到與它有密切商業關係的非洲國家的影響而發揮了建設性作用。如果他們的軍工行業漸漸淡出全球供應鏈中，那麼他們發覺自己將付出經濟上的代價。這將需要一段時間來建立自己新的行爲標準，但壓力開始慢慢顯現，並隨着時間的推移，該協議可以進一步加壓。一名多年參與該協議制定的外交官說，就目前的成就而言已是“相當的不錯”。