Control Arms Day of Action

Oxfam volunteer Nick Martlew gives the insiders low-down on a worldwide day of action for Control Arms.

''The TV screens above the porters' heads were inspired.'' ''The combination of Control Arms t-shirts and wrap-around shades their porters wore, made them look like Terminators with a conscience.'' ''Literally bus-loads of delegates rocked up across the different embassies to get the message across that controlling the arms trade matters.''

What is the Control Arms Day of Action?
On 13 September all sorts of exciting events happened around the world to push the government to support an Arms Trade Treaty when the United Nations General Assembly meets in October.

In London, 13 September had the further significance of being the day before a Ministerial Meeting at which UK Foreign Office mandarins would meet foreign representatives and jolly well tell them what’s what. For all those disillusioned UK voters out there this may come as something of a surprise, but the UK is actually backing an Arms Trade Treaty and has co-drafted a resolution saying so.

One day, months of planning
I was lucky enough to be in on the planning process for the big day, so I knew just how hectic the whole thing would be - or at least I thought I knew.

For weeks there’d been a rush to assemble delegates from five communities in the UK to make the Control Arms voice more resonant.

Then there were the TV screens above the porters’ heads (pictured). This was inspired. The DVDs they showed were really eye-catching - the combination of Control Arms t-shirts and wrap-around shades their porters wore, made them look like Terminators with a conscience.

Let’s do it!
From 8.30 on Wednesday morning the Oxfam office in London was practically crackling with energy. ‘Do this!’, ‘Listen to that!’ and even, at one point, ‘Eat this!’ - from a campaigner bearing pastries and an encouraging smile.

My job was to co-ordinate the Pakistani delegation: meet them at the High Commission, make sure everyone was there and generally show them a good time, within Oxfam’s tight budget and high principles, of course.

And we’re off
Literally bus-loads of delegates rocked up across the different embassies to get the message across that controlling the arms trade matters.

Paul Snowden was in the Pakistani delegation. He works for Amnesty with Pakistani communities in the UK. Paul said ‘I’m pleased to finally get to meet the High Commissioner. I hope Pakistan will support a Treaty; it’s a shame they think it’s not in their interests, because it is!’ And he told them so, very diplomatically, and very positively.

Muhammed Shoaib was another member of ‘my’ delegation. He’s a Pakistani journalist who’s lived in the UK for nearly four years. I spoke to Shoaib before the meeting to hear his experiences of small arms in Pakistan. His accounts are too harrowing to repeat. He spoke to the Deputy High Commissioner with real passion and clarity.

In that big, dull-lit office Paul and Shoaib really got the message across. Anna MacDonald, the Conflict Campaign Manager and therefore the Control Arms big boss, made the case for a Treaty and presented the Deputy with a letter signed by the delegation and a Million Faces folder. This really was where private diplomacy and global mass campaigning come together.

…and relax
After the meeting I went back to the London office and looked after the enormous Indian delegation. We were keen to keep them comfortable because the presence of such impassioned, involved people was, to me, what made this event so powerful.

It was invaluable to have people like Paul and Shoaib along. We shall see in the coming weeks just how successful we’ve been.

Don’t forget to keep an eye on the Control Arms website and, if you haven’t already, get on the Million Faces petition. One thousand people die every day from armed violence. We just need one last push.