Dookeran lobbies UN on arms treaty

FOREIGN Affairs Minister Winston Dookeran has lobbied the United Nations (UN) Security Council to support the Arms Trade Treaty, and called for more women in leadership roles.

In remarks delivered last month at the UN Security Council open debate on peace and security challenges facing small-island developing states in New York, Dookeran also said more women need to be involved in the decision- making process if there is to be lasting peace in the region.

Of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), Dookeran told the Council, “The ATT offers the promise to address a number of security problems faced by the international community. In order to fully achieve its objectives and purpose, the ATT must become universal and implemented by all States; whether manufacturers, exporters or importers of conventional arms.” The Foreign Affairs Minister also said national development required more women being involved in the decision-making process.

“The empowerment of women is an integral aspect of national development as well as an essential pillar in the maintenance of peace and security,” he said.

Dookeran, also met with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon at the UN Headquarters, New York, on the margins of the UN Security Council open debate. He stressed to the Secretary-General that both small and large countries have a responsibility for maintaining international peace and security. In this regard, the Minister reiterated the commitment of Trinidad and Tobago to playing an active and constructive role in ensuring international peace and security.

The Minister expressed the hope that Trinidad and Tobago would be successful in its bid to host the Secretariat of the Arms Trade Treaty, given the need for equitable geographic distribution in the location of international organisations and the fact that the illegal trade in small arms and light weapons remained a major concern for Trinidad and Tobago and the wider region.