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David Leigh
Amnesty: UK firm supplied armoured cars used against Guinea protesters

The Guardian 26 October 2009

Human rights group claims South African subsidiary of BAE Systems sold Mamba vehicles, used to quell demonstrations

ecent brutal attacks on demonstrators in the west African state of Guinea have involved British-supplied armoured cars, Amnesty International alleged today.

The human rights organisation is calling for a freeze on all ammunition and riot gear exports to the military junta in Guinea, where a junior officer, Captain Dadis Camara, seized power last December. Soldiers subsequently fired on unarmed demonstrators at a football stadium in the capital, Conakry, killing an estimated 150 people.

European Union foreign ministers are expected to confirm an arms embargo when they meet this week in Brussels. Last week, the Economic Community for West African States (Ecowas) banned the sale of arms to Guinea.

Amnesty published links to footage which, it said, showed the use of Mamba armoured cars against protesters. Ten Mambas were sold to Guinea by a South Africa-based manufacturer which was a subsidiary of the British arms firm Alvis. The firm, Alvis OMC, was subsequently taken over by the British arms giant BAE Systems. According to Amnesty, Alvis OMC stated at that time of the 2003 sale that the vehicles were for border control.

The pictures are reported to show the use of the armoured personnel carriers by Guinea's security forces during attacks on demonstrators. The UN security council and the African Union strongly condemned the attacks.

The campaigners said photographs taken on 1 October showed security officers patrolling Conakry in a Mamba and video footage showed security forces arriving in these vehicles to suppress a demonstration in the city on 28 September.

Further footage of a funeral for victims showed Mambas arriving with security forces who fired teargas at people gathered at Conakry's main mosque, campaigners said.

Amnesty's UK's arms programme director, Oliver Sprague, said: "The transfer of supplies should stop until the Guinean government has taken steps to prevent these violations from recurring and has brought to justice those responsible for the recent brutal attacks.

"The EU should immediately freeze all arms transfers to Guinea and BAE Systems must ensure that its companies do not supply any spare parts, repairs or follow-on equipment."

In a previous report, Amnesty documented Mambas being driven into crowds of peaceful demonstrators in Conakry in January 2007. The rights group says the French government may also have authorised the recent supply of teargas and anti-riot grenades to Guinean security forces.

France, Portugal and Spain have reported to the UN Comtrade customs database that between 2006 and 2008 they made more than $5m (£3.1m) of exports to Guinea in categories covering ammunition and cartridges. France has insisted it has not authorised the supply of "lethal" ammunition to Guinea since 2004.

The latest government review of UK arms export controls rejected calls from Amnesty and other organisations for UK-owned subsidiary companies operating overseas to be regulated by UK arms export controls. It said talks were taking place at the UN general assembly in New York on a proposed arms trade treaty that would be robust enough to stop irresponsible arms transfers.

Sprague said: "An arms trade treaty that does not prevent supplies to those with a persistent record of grave human rights violations like Guinea's security forces will be a worthless gesture."

The current arms trade treaty resolution tabled on 15 October by the UK and six other countries says formal negotiations for a treaty should be concluded by 2012. However, the resolution requires that the final negotiating conference in 2012 must take decisions on the basis of consensus: a procedure that could allow any single country to block decisions.