arms companies exposed · -caatnews issue 226 october–december 2012 £1.00 unit 4, 5-7 wells...

-CAATnews

Issue 226October–December 2012

£1.00

Unit 4, 5-7 Wells TerraceLondon N4 3JU

Tel: 020 7281 0297Email: [email protected]

Website: www.caat.org.uk

ARMS COMPANIES

EXPOSED

CAAT honoured withRight Livelihood Award

IN THIS ISSUE...

CAAT had some fantastic newsthis autumn, as we wereawarded one of four RightLivelihood Awards for 2012.

This is an incredibleachievement: termed the“Alternative Nobel Prize”, theaward honours organisations andindividuals “offering practical andexemplary answers to the mosturgent challenges to us today”.

The award recognises the hardwork of thousands of activistsaround the UK, and CAAT hopes

the publicity it generates willhelp get the argument acrossthat it is not OK for theGovernment to promoteweapons sales. We also

hope the publicity will helpour partners in other countries to

get their message across.What better time then to get

involved in CAAT: SteeringCommittee elections take placesoon and we’d really welcome yourinvolvement – see page 10 for theparticulars.

Editor Melanie Jarman

Proofreader John Moseley

Design Richie Andrew

Contributors Ann Feltham, NicholasGilby, Tom Greenwood, HenryMcLaughlin, Anne-Marie O’Reilly, IanPrichard, Beth Smith, Kaye Stearman,Sarah Waldron.

Legal consultant Glen Reynolds

Thank you also to our dedicated teamof CAATnews stuffers.

Printed by Russell Press on 100%recycled paper using only postconsumer waste.

Content of most website references isalso available in print – contact theCAAT office.

Campaign Against Arms Trade,Unit 4, 5-7 Wells Terrace,London N4 3JUTel: 020 7281 0297Email: [email protected]: www.caat.org.uk

If you use Charities Aid Foundationcheques you can support CAATthrough TREAT (Trust for Research andEducation on Arms Trade). Pleasesend CAF cheques, payable to TREAT,to the office making clear that youwish for your donation to supportCAAT’s research programme. UnlikeCAAT, TREAT is a registered charity(No.328694).

Material from CAAT is free for non-commerical reproduction. Non-CAATcontributors retain copyright of workused. Please contact and creditCAATnews if reproducing material.

The content and views expressed inarticles, advertisements andpromotional material included withinCAATnews by other organisations arenot necessarily endorsed or supportedby CAAT. Any related enquiries orconcerns should be addressed to therelevant organisation.

To receive this issue ofCAATnews in largeprint please call 020 7281 0297

CAATnews

Welcome to this issue of CAATnews

OCT-DEC 2012 CAATnews

Campaign Against Arms Trade works to end the international arms trade.The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and security,and damages economic development. Large scale military procurement andarms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to internationalproblems.

Summer developments 3

Arms trade shorts 4-5

Disarm the Gallery 6

Cable’s constituents speak out 7

Month of action; DSEi 2013 8-9

CAAT updates; They said it 10

BAE-EADS merger 11

Parliamentary 12

Anti-bribery 13

Universities Network 14-15

Donate 16

JULY ROUND-UP

July 2012: a month of significantdevelopmentsThis particular month saw armsdealers peddling their wares inFarnborough and negotiationsget underway in New York foran international Arms TradeTreaty; but the ground-breakingarms trade news camepackaged in a far more prosaicform – a Parliamentary report.Ann Feltham gives details.

July’s report from the Commons’Committees on Arms Export Controls(CAEC) acknowledged an “inherentconflict between strongly promotingarms exports to authoritarian regimeswhilst strongly criticising their lack ofhuman rights at the same time.”CAAT has been arguing this foryears of course, but for aparliamentary committee, chaired byformer Conservative Defence MinisterSir John Stanley, to make this pointfeels like significant progress.

Getting it rightCAEC also noted that theGovernment reacted to the ArabSpring by revoking 158 arms exportlicences and, later, streamlining theprocedures for revoking licences infuture. However, the report stressedthat with no noticable change in therepressive regimes to which the armswere being shipped before and afterthe start of the Arab Spring, the scaleof the revocations indicated that theinitial licensing process was flawed.The decisions need to be right in thefirst place.

The UKTI DSO listThe Government’s role in promotingmilitary exports, including throughthe UK Trade & Investment Defence &Security Organisation (UKTI DSO)has also been considered by CAEC.In November 2011 arms industryrepresentatives told CAEC that themarkets envisaged for new militaryorders were in eastern Europe andthe USA and “shouldn’t really causesignificant concern”. CAAT wrote to

CAEC to point out that UKTI DSOhad a “priority list” of countries forits export promotion activities,several of them with very dubioushuman rights records.

For this 2012 report, CAECproactively requested the UKTI DSO“priority list” and has asked theGovernment to explain why itincludes Libya and Saudi Arabiawhen both countries are also listedby the Foreign and CommonwealthOffice in its latest “Human Rights andDemocracy Annual Report” as beingCountries of Concern.

The treatyAlso in July, in New York,negotiations at the United Nations foran arms trade treaty failed to reacha conclusion after governments,including that of the United States,asked for more time. The next stepsmay be taken at the GeneralAssembly towards the end of theyear or at another speciallyconvened meeting in 2013 or later.

CAAT has always been rathersceptical about the difference a

treaty might make (see CAATnews

224). Would it, for example, haveprevented the initial issuing of thoseexport licences revoked during theArab Spring? Or the arming ofGaddafi?

Even the UK government nowseems to have limited hopes for thetreaty, with Foreign Office MinisterAlistair Burt telling CAEC inSeptember that the treaty is toreplace a vacuum, to have somethingin place in countries where there iscurrently nothing.

The arms fairOne UK government minister waspresent, briefly, for the Arms TradeTreaty negotiations. Our third Julyevent, the Farnborough Airshow, wasattended by fifteen, including thePrime Minister. While Farnboroughalso showcases civil aviation, there isa strong emphasis on military sales.UKTI DSO hosted 34 militarydelegations at Farnborough, fromcountries that included Algeria,Bahrain, India, Iraq, Libya, Pakistanand Saudi Arabia.

CAATnews OCT-DEC 2012 3

Despite considerable chaos at home, Libyan military personnel enjoyedtheir “priority market” status at the Farnborough Airshow, being snappeddoing their rounds of the displays. Photo: Betsy Barkas

BAEBAE Systems and EADS haveconfirmed they are in merger talks(see page 11). Arrangements underdiscussion would see BAE own 40per cent of the new grouping andEADS own 60 per cent.

BAE has hired lobby firms inWashington to help assuage anyresulting US national securityconcerns. The firms are saying thatthe merger will have no impact onBAE’s work for the US government.DEFENSE NEWS, 12/9/12; THE HILL,

19/9/12

BAE Systems Land Systems SouthAfrica recently signed an agreementwith United Arab Emirates-basedInternational Golden Group. The twohave worked together previously andthis latest deal is to supply armouredvehicles to UAE and the wider region(see quotes in ‘They said it’ on page10). BAE, 20/9/12

South KoreaBAE has won a South Korean deal toupgrade KF-16 fighter aircraft overthe next decade.

AgustaWestland has also signedpartnership agreements with SouthKorean companies Firstec andDodaam Systems. AgustaWestlandsaid this was the first step inproviding dedicated service andtraining centres for militaryhelicopters in South Korea. DEFENSE NEWS, 31/7/12; UPI.COM,

14/9/12

FinmeccanicaQuoting emails published byWikiLeaks, an Italian paper hasreported that Finmeccanica sold itssecure Tetra communicationsequipment to Syria as recently asFebruary 2012. Finmeccanica saidthe sale was lawful and contradictedclaims that the technology was formilitary as well as civil use.REUTERS, 5/7/12

DronesFormer Director of PublicProsecutions Lord Macdonald ofRiver Glaven has warned that theGovernment must come clean overalleged help it is giving the US tocarry out drone attacks in Pakistan,saying there was compellingevidence that GCHQ had assistedthe US in “locational intelligence”before drone strikes.

The family of a US drone strikevictim is already taking legal actionagainst the Foreign andCommonwealth Office over allegedcomplicity.TIMES, 18/9/12

UK trainingThe UK government has spentmillions of pounds on trainingmilitary, police and securitypersonnel from oppressive regimesthat have arms embargoes in place.

In the last five years, Sudan,where the president has beenindicted by the International CriminalCourt for genocide, war crimes andcrimes against humanity, and theDemocratic Republic of the Congo,where extensive human rights abuseshave been documented, received£2.4m between them in training andsupport for military and defencepersonnel.GUARDIAN, 25/9/12

ShellLeaked financial data passed to theorganisation Platform suggests thatShell is paying Nigerian securityforces tens of millions of dollars ayear to guard installations and staffin the Niger delta. In 2009 Shellspent $65m on Nigerian governmentforces and $75m on “other” securitycosts. A Platform spokesperson said:“It is staggering that Shell transferred$65m of company funds andresources into the hands of soldiersand police known for routine humanrights abuses.” GUARDIAN, 19/8/12

SurveillanceThe UK government has mademoves towards restricting sales ofspying software to Egypt. This is thefirst time it has taken action on suchan issue and could be a significantstep towards the regulation ofsurveillance technologies.

The campaign group PrivacyInternational had threatened to seeka judicial review of theGovernment’s decision not to barthe export to Egypt of GammaInternational’s surveillance software.

Such legal action could have drawnattention to the wider sale of similartechnology by UK companies.Privacy International said questionsremained, calling for further actionto bring other UK companies underthe export licensing regime.OBSERVER, 9/9/12

Representatives from the UK Trade& Investment Defence & SecurityOrganisation (UKTI DSO) wereinvited by Hidden TechnologySystems International Ltd tocelebrate the company winning theQueen’s Award for Enterprise:International Trade 2012. TheEssex-based company specialises incovert tracking and surveillancesystems, with customers includingthe Saudi Arabian police force.THE BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIVE

JOURNALISM, 1/12/11; UKTI DSO,

7/8/12

ARMS TRADE SHORTS

Defence Images/Flickr

4 OCT-DEC 2012 CAATnews

ChemringUS private equity firm Carlyle Grouphas been granted an extension to thedeadline by which to bid for UKcompany Chemring.

Chemring shares jumped whenCarlyle’s takeover approach was firstannounced in August. REUTERS, 14/9/12; FINANCIAL

TIMES, 19/8/12

Czech RepublicThe American chief executive ofCzech-based truck manufacturer Tatrawas detained in August in connectionwith graft allegations (which hedenies). The detention was based ontestimony of a former Czech defenceminister who was accused ofcorruption linked to the same contract.AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, 21/8/12

WhistleblowersWhistleblowers at the centre of twoof the UK’s highest profile corporatebribery allegations have created asupport group for people in the samesituation. Ian Foxley, whoseallegations have prompted the EADSinvestigation detailed on page 13,and Peter Gardiner, who blew thewhistle on BAE a decade ago, haveformed Whistleblowers UK. Theorganisation aims to provide probono legal support, influence UKpolicy and lobby for changes to thelaw relating to whistleblowers.TELEGRAPH, 26/8/12

StatisticsIn 2011 the UK came third in ananalysis of global arms sales withdeliveries valued at $3,000m.The USheaded the list with $16,160m ofdeliveries and Russia came secondwith $8,700m of deliveries.

In the same year the UK came10th in worldwide arms transferagreements, with agreements valuedat $400m.CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE,

24/8/12


DEVELOPMENTS IN THE GLOBAL ARMS TRADE

UK arms licences and the Arab SpringBelow are selected UK arms export licence approvals to countries involved inthe Arab Spring. They include Saudi Arabia and UAE which sent forces toBahrain on 14 March 2011 to help suppress protests.

2011Saudi Arabia – components for military combat vehiclesUAE – components for all-wheel drive vehicles with ballisticprotectionBahrain (Rv) & UAE (Rv) – weapon night sights, imagingcameras (T)Bahrain (Rv), Saudi Arabia & UAE – open licences forballistic shields and body armourBahrain (Rv) – equipment for the use of sniper rifles (T)Saudi Arabia – components for military combat vehiclesSaudi Arabia – gun silencers and sniper riflesBahrain (Rv) & UAE – open licences for weapon sightsLibya (Rv) – open licence for military communications equipmentUAE – components for machine gunsSaudi Arabia & UAE – open licences for a range of small armsBahrain (Rv) – components for small arms

2010UAE – a range of small armsBahrain (Rv) & UAE (Rv) – weapon day and night sights (T)Egypt – body armourLibya (Rv) – weapon sightsEgypt – imaging cameras, weapon sights (T)Bahrain (Rv) – anti-armour ammunition, small arms ammunitionMorocco – military communications equipmentSaudi Arabia – components for military combat vehiclesUAE – military vehicle componentsUAE – military communications equipmentBahrain, Saudi Arabia & UAE – open licences for widerange of equipment including for imaging and targeting Bahrain (Rv), Saudi Arabia & UAE – open licences forweapon sights equipmentEgypt – components for optical target acquisition equipmentLibya – military combat vehicles (T)Bahrain – equipment for the use of sniper rifles

Notes:(T) – temporary licences, often for demonstration purposes(Rv) – licences later revokedLicences are for specified amounts of equipment except for ‘open’ licences where there is no limit to theequipment that can be exported.

For further information go to www.caat.org.uk/resources/export-licences/

1 Mar

25 Feb

15 Feb

9 Feb

3 Feb

3 Feb

31 Jan

27 Jan

27 Jan

25 Jan

12 Jan

7 Jan

31 Dec

21 Dec

16 Dec

26 Nov

23 Nov

19 Nov

18 Nov

2 Nov

29 Oct

28 Oct

26 Oct

20 Oct

14 Oct

13 Oct

5 Oct

This Halloween the NationalGallery is overdoing the horror:weapons manufacturerFinmeccanica will be using itsrooms to hold an eveningsoiree. Sarah Waldron outlinesactions in the campaign to“Disarm the Gallery”.

This October’s booking is just thelatest in a long list of events thatFinmeccanica has held in theGallery’s grand surroundings. Acompany that sells devastatingweapons, and whose customersinclude dictators, will entertainsurrounded by paintings that theNational Gallery says “inspire andenrich life.” Previous events includelast September’s official reception forDSEi, the world’s largest arms fair.

Finmeccanica purchases theprivilege of using the Gallery for just£30,000 a year and gets a greatdeal. It can use the Gallery’s facilitiesand prestige to lend a façade oflegitimacy to its deadly work. But theGallery’s reputation can only betarnished by association with acompany that arms repressiveregimes and is the subject ofinvestigations into alleged corruption.

CAAT is calling on the NationalGallery to stop supporting the armstrade and stop helping the promotionof weapons sales to repressiveregimes. Art and arms shouldn’t mix!

Zombies v. the arms tradeDress up and join usat 6pm onWednesday 31October for a zombieprotest outside theGallery. We might notbe as scary as armsdealers – but we canhighlight the ghoulishbusiness that theGallery is supporting.

Then, in December,we’ll be looking out forFinmeccanica’s regularChristmas reception,

which it says is “an opportunity tosay thank you to customers andclients for their support throughoutthe year.”

Less horror at Halloween;more peace at ChristmasIf you can’t make it to the Gallery,you could send a seasonal card tothe Gallery’s Director (Dr NicholasPenny, National Gallery, TrafalgarSquare, London WC2N 5DN),

asking him to reconsider theGallery’s support for thearms trade.

Art...We’ve already receivedsome powerful submissionsfor our online gallery of art(see www.caat.org.uk/campaigns/disarm-the-gallery/take-action-artwork.php) that isinspired by the Gallerypieces and the Gallery’ssupport for the arms

trade. If you’d like to contributeplease send high resolutions versionsto [email protected] or by postto the CAAT office.

... not armsThe Gallery says that public criticismwill be considered when it decideson whether to accept controversialsponsorship. Please help show thatsupport for the arms trade is not OK!Contact CAAT for campaignpostcards to distribute locally.

Call to action: Disarm the Gallery

NATIONAL GALLERY

Bubbles not Bombs: on 21 September, the International Day of Peace,giant bubbles filled Trafalgar Square with the message “Bubbles NotBombs” to highlight the National Gallery’s support for the arms trade


Image: Paul McNeill

Paul Tippell of Twickenham,Richmond and KingstonNetwork against the Arms Trade(TRAKNAT) spoke to CAATabout the network

Why did local groups cometogether to form a NetworkAgainst the Arms Trade?Our local MP, Vince Cable, isresponsible for the licensing ofweapons exports and also thegovernment agency that promotesarms exports (UK Trade & InvestmentDefence & Security, UKTI DSO). Asconstituents we are in a uniqueposition to influence this key decision-maker.

How did the network start?Kingston Peace Council organised ademo outside Cable’s offices duringthe Arab Spring last year tochallenge UK arms sales to dictators.After that, we gave presentations tolocal groups, asking people to signthe petition and to join the network.TRAKNAT now includes Amnesty,Green Party, Greenpeace, Friends ofthe Earth, Palestine SolidarityCampaign, and World DevelopmentMovement groups. We’ve also hadsupport from local churches andlocal councillors.

What does the network want?We campaign for Vince Cable toshut UKTI DSO and stop underwritingloans through UK Export Finance, asthese enable arms sales to takeplace. Until the Government stopspromoting arms sales, it will continueto ignore its own rules, whichprohibit arms sales where they maybe used for internal repression, orexternal aggression.

Some countries are still payingVince Cable’s department for debtsthat were run up through UK armssales to their former dictators. Wecall for these, and other unjust debts,to be cancelled. We also want to seearms sales substantially restrictedwhere they divert resources from

development and exacerbatepoverty.

How have local peopleresponded to yourcampaigning?We get at least a 60 per centresponse from people we ask to signthe petition. People are verysurprised that Vince Cable is actuallyresponsible for this. They regard himas “Mr Nice Guy” and can’t believethat he is in fact licensing andpromoting weapons.

What are your plans for thepublic meeting on 29November?The meeting will be a rareopportunity to hold Vince Cable toaccount for the policies that hisDepartment is pursuing, and to callon local Conservative MP ZacGoldsmith to exert pressure on theGovernment. As constituents we willpresent our concerns and askquestions designed to expose theimmorality of UK arms exportpractices and to seek specific policychanges.

I urge everyone who can to join usat the meeting to give your supportto local campaigners and lend yourvoice to those calling on Vince Cableand the Government to changedirection on UK arms trading.

What would you say to peoplewho would like to dosomething similar in theirconstituency?The network idea has provedsurprisingly successful. Each grouphas nominated one person torepresent them, and they often cometo meetings. Everyone does just alittle bit so the work gets shared andthrough our groups we can reach amuch wider audience. That hasworked really well.

TRAKNAT is co-ordinating a publicmeeting on 29 November to quizMPs Vince Cable and Zac Goldsmithon the arms trade. For details seewww.traknat.org.uk.

Cable’s constituents speak out

LOCAL NETWORKING

Constituents held Vince Cable to account with a vigil at his surgery


Campaigners around thecountry took part in a month ofaction in September

1Great Yarmouth:Campaigners in GreatYarmouth visited a site that

helps make smart weapons, militarysatellites, and military aircraft. Oneparticipant said: “We have exposedthe arms trade and let local peopleknow what is going on. It issurprising what just a few people canachieve.”

2Edinburgh: EdinburghCAAT highlighted armscompany Selex Galileo,

which makes drones, with a PeaceVigil (pictured below).

3London: A picket, a musicalprotest and a cycle tourhighlighted the arms trade in

our midst.

4Hastings: Campaigners dida cycle tour of GeneralDynamics sites (pictured

opposite). Local campaigner MayaEvans said: “While visitingAfghanistan on a peace delegation Imet innocent civilians who had lostloved ones to drone attacks. It’s aparticularly nasty, inaccurate andcowardly form of warfare; it’s likeshooting someone in the back, Idon’t want that kind of thing in mycommunity.”

DSEi

The arms trade on our doorstepsResist the arms fairDSEi, one of the world’s biggestarms fairs, is scheduled to returnto London’s Docklands inSeptember 2013. The Stop theArms Fair coalition has pledged toresist the arms fair and is callingfor a massive day of action on 10September 2013 if the fair goesahead.

Building oppositionThis September’s month of actionhelped to show the companies thatattend DSEi that wherever theyoperate, there is opposition. Keepbuilding links, awareness andpressure in your local community:visit www.caat.org.uk/on-our-doorstep to find your local armscompany and ideas forchallenging it.

Why we’re resisting thearms fair“The arms fair is one of thegrossest manifestations of theglobal arms trade. Huge profitsare made by arms companies, butthe costs are borne by the UKtaxpayer and the millions ofpeople whose lives are blightedby the arms trade.”CAMPAIGN AGAINST ARMS TRADE

“While the profits of this arms fairand ExCeL [the venue for DSEi]are exported to their owners inNew York and Abu Dhabi, theshame of hosting the fair remainsin London, and the slaughtered,bereaved and maimed victims areall over the world.”EAST LONDON AGAINST ARMS FAIRS

“Every bomb that is dropped,every bullet that is fired, has to bemade somewhere. And whereverthat is, it can be resisted.”SMASH EDO


2

5Nottingham: InNottingham, the Shut DownHeckler & Koch campaign

leafleted as people arrived at aconference at the church next door tothe arms company.

A passing taxi driver said: “Thereis far too much killing in the world asit is, and these people are sellingmore guns from here?” He took ahandful of flyers and as he droveaway he was still shaking his headin disbelief.

Companies

6Lincoln: Primetake in Lincolnpromoted its range of rubberball shot, teargas cartridges

and rubber baton rounds at IDEX, amassive arms fair in the Middle East,at the height of the Arab uprisings in2011.

In the two years before, it appliedto export military equipment toBahrain and was actively promotingits weapons to the Gaddafi regime inLibya.

7Newcastle: BAE alsoapplied for at least onelicence to export military

equipment (from the categories ofsmall arms, artillery, mortars, smokeand gas projectors, and ammunition)to Bahrain in the months precedingthat country’s uprising. BAE’sNewcastle site manufactured theTactica armoured vehicles that SaudiArabia sent into Bahrain in March2011 to aid the Government’sbloody suppression of pro-democracyprotests.

8Hampshire: AccuracyInternational in Hampshiremanufactures sniper rifles that

are sold to military and police forcesin over 60 countries. CAAT’sresearch has revealed it applied toexport military equipment to Bahrainin 2009-10 – and its products werepromoted to Libya in the monthsbefore the February 2011 revolution. ANNE-MARIE O’REILLY & SARAH

WALDRON

How you will resist the arms fair?See www.stopthearmsfair.org.ukfor info and ideas.

MONTH OF ACTION


The arms trade on our doorsteps

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1

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8

Hastings campaigners on the Merchants of Death Bike Ride

Would you like to participate inthe running of, and decision-making at, CAAT?

We are looking for enthusiastic CAATsupporters to join our SteeringCommittee next year. Responsibilitiesinclude attending meetings in Londonfour times a year and sometimesassisting in other duties.

Please note that the deadline fornominations is 14 November, not 1December as stated in error in thelast issue of CAATnews. This meansthat there isn’t long to go, so don’tdelay – we’d love to hear from you!

Contact Claire on 020 7281 0297or [email protected] for moreinformation.

CAAT Steering Committee

UPDATES


CAAT National Gathering,Saturday 9 March10.30am-4.30pm (Registrationfrom 10am), Conway Hall,25 Red Lion Square, London,WC1R 4RL

Cost (includes tea, coffee anda delicious veggie lunch): £7waged / £3 unwagedVital public services are being cut,yet UK military spending is amongthe highest in the world. Elsewhere,repression and death are a directresult of the UK government’s zealouspromotion of weapons. Help stop thisoutrage manifesting itself in

September 2013, when DSEi, one ofthe world’s largest arms fairs, is dueto take place in London’s Docklands(see pages 8-9).

Exactly six months before DSEi,make a date with CAAT’s NationalGathering. For one day, we can betogether to share ideas andinspiration, hear from experts,engage in debate and plan how tomake a direct impact on the armstrade.

Book now for an inspiring andeye-opening day:www.caat.org.uk/nationalgathering

Make a date withCAAT in 2013

They said it“Due to the nature of some of ourbusiness we do not publicise ourlocation. Please call or email fordetails.”OVIK SPECIAL VEHICLES WEBSITE

“The idea that you should produceweapons of mass destruction inorder to keep 1,500 jobs going inthe Barrow shipyard is palpablyludicrous. We could give them alla couple of million quid and sendthem to the Bahamas for the restof their lives, and the world wouldbe a much better place, and wewould have saved a lot ofmoney.”NICK HARVEY, LIB DEM MP AND

FORMER DEFENCE MINISTER, ON WHY

THE UK SHOULDN'T REPLACE

TRIDENT, 26 SEPTEMBER 2012

“His Majesty’s very generousdonation [£3 million] to the RoyalMilitary Academy Sandhurst hasbeen received and with muchgratitude. I would be most gratefulif you would please convey myhumble duty and my sincerestthanks to His Majesty forproviding these funds.”MAJOR GENERAL PATRICK MARRIOTT,

LETTER TO THE KING OF BAHRAIN,

24 MAY 2012

“The Government’s attitude toBahrain is completely different tothe rest of the Arab Spring, and ifanything, over the last six months,it’s moved [to be] far moresycophantic to the regime thanbefore.”ANDY SLAUGHTER MP, CHAIR OF THE

ALL-PARTY PARLIAMENTARY GROUP

ON BAHRAIN, 2 SEPTEMBER 2012

“The Middle East is an importantregion for us and working withlocal industry and assisting theUAE defence industry to grow, isour goal.”JOHAN STEYN, MANAGING DIRECTOR,

BAE LAND SYSTEMS SOUTH AFRICA,

20 SEPTEMBER 2012

Greetings cardsShow your support for CAAT bypurchasing our beautiful greetingscards. Choose from this year’s card(pictured), or take advantage of thespecial offers on previous years’ cards.Cards come in packs of ten withenvelopes. You can order them usingthe enclosed form or atwww.caat.org.uk

BAE and EADS, two of theworld’s largest arms companies,have proposed a merger. KayeStearman considers theimplications.

News of the proposed mergerbetween BAE Systems and EADS,maker of Airbus and armaments,leaked to the press on 12 September.Together they would be the world’slargest arms and military servicescompany. In the new entity –nicknamed BEADS – EADS wouldcomprise 60 per cent and BAE 40per cent.

The controversial tie-up iscomplicated by the need forgovernment approvals – the French,German and Spanish governmentshave political vetos and financialstakes in EADS and the UKgovernment has a “golden share” inBAE. In addition, the US government,a major BAE customer, will also needto give the deal the nod. The initialdate for merger agreement is 10October but this is likely to beextended.

What does it mean forcampaigners?In campaigning terms, the mergerwill make little difference to CAATand other anti-arms tradeorganisations. The political,economic and ethical argumentsagainst arms exports, especially toabusive, undemocratic andaggressive governments, remain solidand compelling.

Both companies have been subjectto criminal investigations. Rather thancampaigning against two large,dangerous and unethical companies,we would campaign against onegiant, dangerous and unethicalcompany.

Jobs and securityOn the positive side, BAE’s self-generated image as an ultra-patrioticBritish company would be damagedby the merger. It would be much

harder to maintain their oft-repeatedfiction that they protect UK jobs orsupport national security or providevalue for the taxpayer.

As Tory MP Douglas Carswelltweeted: “If EADS’ takeover of BAEgoes ahead, then perhaps we can

stop pretending there is anythingpatriotic about defence procurementscams.”

Military spending in westerncountries is in decline, which is whyBAE is so keen on the merger. Thisdevelopment reinforces ourarguments that public resources (likegovernment subsidies to armscompanies) should be directed

towards other sectors, such asrenewables, which would increaseUK and international security; andthat this would provide a more stablebase for creating new jobs andindustries and retaining skilled UKworkers.

Stronger campaign linksThe merger, if it takes place, will givefurther possibilities for greatercooperation between Europe’s anti-arms trade organisations.

CAAT’s Right Livelihood Awardhighlights its achievements incampaigning against BAE – and ifthere is a merger we will campaignjust as effectively against BEADS.

A new and dangerous liaison

BAE-EADS MERGER

“Rather than campaigning against two large,dangerous and unethical companies, we wouldcampaign against one giant, dangerous andunethical company.”


Campagne tegan Wapenhandel (Dutch Campaign Against Arms Trade)protest outside EADS AGM in Amsterdam. Photo: ENAAT

A “Comment is Free” article in theGuardian on 17 September gave anindication of Labour thinking on armsexports. Shadow Foreign SecretaryDouglas Alexander and his Defencecounterpart Jim Murphy argued forbetter risk assessment before exportlicences are granted, priorparliamentary scrutiny of them, anda global arms trade treaty. CAAT hasasked for clarification regarding thesecond of these and has doubts as tothe effectiveness of the third.

For an article headed “The UKneeds a truly progressive arms policyin the wake of the Arab spring”, thereal disappointment is the failure tosay anything about exportpromotion.

Take actionIt is vital that Labour adopts a policyon arms exports that will really makea difference.

Please write to Douglas AlexanderMP, Shadow Foreign Secretary,House of Commons, London SW1A0AA or email him [email protected]

You can say you are pleased thatLabour is considering arms exports,but if a future Government is toeffectively control them it must stopacting as a sales rep for the armsindustry. In particular, it must end thepromotion of arms sales to repressiveregimes.

Labour should adopt policies to:Stop using taxpayers’ money topromote the arms trade, especiallythrough the UK Trade & InvestmentDefence & Security Organisation(UKTI DSO);Reallocate Government subsidiesso that skilled workers currentlyemployed in the arms industry caninstead use their talents to help theUK develop clean technology –boosting jobs and the economy.

Export licences – more informationIf you want to export military or“dual use” goods (the latter are thosewith military and civil application)from the UK you need to get alicence from the Export ControlOrganisation (ECO), part of theDepartment for Business, Innovationand Skills. Earlier in 2012, the ECOheld a consultation to see if moreinformation about export licenceapplications should be made public.CAAT participated in theconsultation, arguing for greatertransparency and for the raw data tobe made available.

The ECO has now promised moreinformation, in particular about“open licences”. These are given forsupposedly low-risk exports andinvolve the company keeping recordsfor random inspection, but nosystematic reporting to the ECO.Now the data will be sent to theECO and made public in some form.

Moves towards greater opennessare welcome, but CAAT will reservefinal judgment until more is knownabout the implementation of theproposals, scheduled to start in April2013.

ACoBA does not shutthe revolving doorThe Commons’ PublicAdministration Select Committee(PASC) has looked into theAdvisory Committee on BusinessAppointments (ACoBA), whichconsiders applications from formerministers, civil servants and seniorarmed forces personnel who wishto join private companies. Adisproportionate number of theseare people from the Ministry ofDefence going to arms companies.PASC says ACoBA lacks adequatepowers and resources, does nothave appropriate membership forits function, and should beabolished.

Some good newsThe Commons’ Foreign AffairsCommittee has announced that itis going to examine the UK’srelations with Saudi Arabia andBahrain. This news will havealarmed the Government and thearms companies as much as itdelighted CAAT.ANN FELTHAM

PARLIAMENTARY

Douglas Alexander MP

View CAAT’s arms export app atwww.caat.org.uk/resources/export-licences/

Towards a Labour policy?


Nicholas Gilby reports on acurrent investigation into briberyallegations relating to asubsidiary of EADS.

Readers of CAATnews may recall thefurore in 2006 when the SeriousFraud Office (SFO) had to stop theirinvestigation of BAE Systems’slucrative Al Yamamah arms deal inSaudi Arabia because of threats fromthe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, andhuge pressure from the UKgovernment and BAE Systems.

Although the SFO was unable tofinish its investigation, the Americansdid: BAE was found guilty of falseaccounting and making misleadingstatements, and fined almost £300million. As part of the settlement,BAE Systems accepted it hadprovided “substantial benefits” to aSaudi Arabian official with“influence” over the Al Yamamahdeal.

Another arms company nowunder investigationMore recently, on 7 August this year,the Director of the SFO quietlyannounced he had decided to opena criminal investigation intoallegations concerning the companyGPT and aspects of the conduct oftheir business in the Kingdom ofSaudi Arabia.

UK-registered GPT is ultimately asubsidiary of the Europeanaerospace conglomerate EADS,which may soon merge with BAESystems. GPT’s project, on which thecompany is wholly dependent andwhich is said to be worth around £2billion per year, is known asSANGCOM. Like Al Yamamah, theproject is supervised by the Ministryof Defence (MoD).

AllegationsSince autumn last year, allegationshave been aired in the media (inparticular on the Exaro Newswebsite) about corruption in theSANGCOM project. Ian Foxley, a

former British Army officer, was in2010 appointed by GPT asProgramme Director and has allegedthat GPT paid bribes in SaudiArabia. He has also alleged that atleast some of the MoD SANGCOMteam knew of, and acquiesced, insuch practices.

Exaro News revealed that MrFoxley’s predecessor, Eddie Fisher,had told the SFO GPT conducted“unethical and inappropriate”business practices.

PaymentsIn May Exaro published a scheduleof payments made between 2007and 2010 by GPT to two CaymanIslands-registered companies: SimecInternational and DurantonInternational. The schedule, said tohave been compiled by a “financialofficer” of GPT, shows that a total of£14.5 million was paid. Exaroreports that the “financial officer”

says that the payments are highlyirregular because the two companiesperform no work under the contract.

MoD approval of “fees”Back in 1976, when the SANGCOMdeal was first negotiated, the thenMoD Permanent Secretary, FrankCooper, approved the inclusion of“agency fees” of three per cent for acompany called, by remarkablecoincidence, Simec International. Adraft of the submission put to Cooperdescribed these fees as being inpractice intended for the “exertion ofinfluence to sway decisions in favourof the client.” According to Exaro,the MoD was told of the recentpayments to Simec in 2008 but thepayments continued until 2010.

More recently Exaro has claimedGPT gave luxury cars worth£200,000 in total to four Saudiofficials, and paid a Saudi generalrent for a lavish Riyadh villa.

EADS has said the allegations arebeing “properly addressed” by it,and the MoD has refused tocomment. The SFO investigationcontinues.

Write to Rt Hon Margaret HodgeMP, Chair of the Public AccountsCommittee, House of Commons,London SW1P 3JA, and demand aNational Audit Office investigationinto the adequacy of the MoD’santi-bribery procedures.

Serious Fraud Office investigates Saudi arms deal (again)

FEATURE


Gagging justice – CAAT outside theSFO offices in 2007

Campaigners’ to-do listHaunt the arms dealers at the National Gallery on 31 October! (page 6).If the DSEi arms fair goes ahead, be there on 10 Sept 2013 (page 8).Expose the arms company on your doorstep (pages 8-9).Interested in joining CAAT’s Steering Committee? Deadline is 14 Nov(page 10).Make a date with CAAT in 2013: book now for the National Gatheringon 9 March (page 10).Call on Shadow Foreign Secretary Douglas Alexander to respond to thechallenge to stop promoting weapons sales to repressive regimes (page12).

Beth Smith looks forward to ayear of student activism.

Recruiting new supportersAt the beginning of each year,universities organise Freshers’ Fairswhere student societies advertisethemselves to the student body. Thesefairs are a great opportunity forstudent groups to attract newmembers and to tap into theexcitement felt by incoming studentslooking for new and interestinggroups to join. CAAT will berepresented on a record number ofFreshers’ Fairs stalls this autumn,helping the student network toexpand even further this year.

Kicking arms companyrecruiters off campusWith the start of the academic yearcomes a renewed attempt by armscompanies to recruit students.However, there is a grand traditionof students countering the promotionof arms companies on theircampuses with creative and dynamicdemonstrations. Arms companies will

face protests at recruitment eventsacross the UK this autumn. Expect tosee Grim Reaper costumes, fakeblood, die-ins and all sorts ofcreative and attention-grabbingdemonstrations over the comingmonths!

Student GatheringAfter a successful student gatheringlast February we’re excited toannounce that the next StudentGathering will be on Saturday 24November. We’re holding thegathering earlier in the academicyear to give students more time todevelop campaigns afterwards.

The gathering will be a day ofworkshops and discussions, relevant

to everyone from new students toseasoned campaigners. It will alsobe a great opportunity to meetpeople from other universities alsolooking to kick arms companies offtheir campuses.

Contact [email protected] more details.

Universities challenged


A student calls on his university to“disarm and discuss”

It supports arms companiesBy participating in military-fundedresearch projects, universities arecarrying out research that armscompanies want done. They aredirectly helping those companies.Even research that has civilianapplications helps arms companiessucceed and thrive.

It presents arms companies aslegitimateIn addition to any direct impact ofthe research itself, participation inmilitary-sponsored research conferslegitimacy onto arms companies. By

partnering with an arms company inany way – whether through aresearch project, investments, orother links – a university sends themessage that the company isrespectable. Universities should notsupport this devastating trade.

The trade hurts students tooEven if a university is solelyconcerned with supporting studentsand giving them opportunities, it mustconsider the impact that its work hasbeyond the campus edge. A numberof university students will have hadtheir lives directly impacted upon by

the arms trade, and all students livein a more dangerous world becauseof it.

There is an alternativeMost of the research money thatuniversities receive from armscompanies originates with thegovernment, as the government paysarms companies to do research anddevelopment (R&D).

The Government needs to shift itsR&D priorities so that this money isinstead invested into sociallyproductive technologies likerenewables.

What’s wrong with universitiesaccepting military funding?

Get involvedFind out what’s happening at your university and across the network atuniversities.caat.org.ukInterested in getting involved? Get in touch at [email protected] university? Contact Anne-Marie on [email protected] forinformation on local CAAT groups.

UNIVERSITIES NETWORK

How much do universitiesreceive in military funding?Kaye Stearman and TomGreenwood give some answersbut we need to know muchmore.

In the past three years 16 leadingUK universities have received at least£83 million worth of funding fromarms companies and the military.Most is directed to engineering andscience departments.

However, the real total is muchhigher. Of the 24 Russell GroupUniversities sent Freedom ofInformation requests on militaryfunding, six refused, or were unableto supply, relevant information. Evenso, the information supplied revealsthat many UK universities areprepared to accept military funding,seemingly without ethical qualms.

Where the funding goesIn terms of individual universitiesreceiving funds from military sources,government and private, the “top”universities were Imperial Collegewith £15.2 million, Sheffield with£13.8 million, Cambridge with£13.8 million and Oxford with justover £9 million. They were followedby Bristol with £6.5 million,Nottingham with just under £6million, Kings College with £5.3million, York with £3.9 million andSouthampton with £3.8 million.Apart from Newcastle with just over£2 million, all other universitiesreceived less than £1 million.

Direct UK government militaryfunding to the 16 universities totalled£23.6 million over the three years –28 per cent of the total from UKmilitary funding sources. The fundingagencies were the Ministry ofDefence, Atomic WeaponsEstablishment and Defence ScienceTechnology Laboratory. The largestrecipients were Imperial College with£7.8 million and Kings College with£5.4 million.

Most military funding came fromprivate companies (public listedcompanies). This totalled £59.9million over the three years – 72 percent of total UK military funding. Byfar the largest company was Rolls-Royce, which totalled at least £36.8million, followed by BAE Systemswith £10.6 million and QinetiQ with£3.2 million. Other companiesincluded Babcock and MBDA.

The largest recipients wereSheffield with £13.5 million,

Cambridge with £9.5 million,Oxford with £8.7 million andNottingham with just over £5 million.Most private funding appears to beGovernment funding, in the form ofresearch and development (R&D)grants to UK arms companies, whichthen subcontract to universities.

The original story, by DinaRickman, was published in theHuffington Post on 28 August2012

Military funding revealed

The University of Nottingham statesthat its mission is to “improve lifefor individuals and societiesworldwide”. Yet it is one of thelargest recipients of military funds,taking just under £6 million overthree years 2009-12. Almost £5million (83 per cent) came fromRolls-Royce.

The relationship between the twois close and symbiotic. The campushas two Rolls-Royce UniversityTechnology Centres. The companysays it gains “significant businessbenefits from such links, asadvanced academic researchtechniques are applied to specificindustrial needs to provide theinnovative solutions that yield step

change improvements in productsand processes.” In turn, theuniversity describes itself as “a cogin [the] continuous process” ofmaintaining the status of Rolls-Royceas a “world-famous brand,synonymous with quality andinnovation.”

Some of the Rolls-Royce fundinggoes to civil projects (although theuniversity has not specified which).Non-military research demonstratesthe capacity of Rolls-Royce topursue technologies with civilianapplications. However, by workingwith Rolls-Royce, the universitycondones the manufacture and saleof lethal weapons technologies.

Focus on Nottingham

Nottingham students stage a die-in in 2009


UNIVERSITIES

arms companies exposed · -caatnews issue 226 october–december 2012 £1.00 unit 4, 5-7 wells...

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