The ending of the Cold War was supposed to increase global security and divert expenditure previously earmarked for arms purchases to more constructive ends. Instead, the arms trade has flourished. Not only conventional arms, but also police and surveillance equipment, have been provided by Western countries seeking to make a profit from conflict in unstable parts of the world. Foreign debt has remained high, development has been held back, and human rights have been systematically abused, all with the connivance of an arms trade prepared to turn a blind eye to the uses to which increasingly sophisticated weaponry is put, so long as hefty profits can be reaped. This disturbing book names the players in the arms trade and charts the impact that it has had on war, human rights, and development. The financial and trade mechanisms that permit the arms trade to continue are revealed, amid sordid tales of bribery and corruption. Gideon Burrows concludes his examination by reviewing the ways in which this trade can be controlled or even abolished.
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About the Author:
Gideon Burrows is a London-based journalist and campaigner. He has been coordinator of the British Campaign Against the Arms Trade, is actively involved in the peace and anti-arms trade movement, and is a conscientious objector to paying taxes for military purposes.
Review:
"a splendid new series of pocketable guides" - The Guardian "closest to the hot headline issues are the No Nonsense Guides" - Boyd Tonkin, The Independent "The No Nosense Guides are the most accessible and enjoyable means for people with hurried lives to find out how the world really works." - George Monbiot "a mass of useful and fascinating information" - Times Literary Supplement "...should be in every secondary school library" - Diva
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- PublisherVerso
- Publication date2002
- ISBN 10 185984426X
- ISBN 13 9781859844267
- BindingPaperback
- Number of pages144
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Rating