UK Government Welcomes the World’s Despots and War Criminals to Arms Fair
A rogue’s gallery of the world’s despots and war criminals
descended on London last week, at the invitation of the British
government. They were attending the Defence and Security Equipment
International Exhibition (DSEI).
The biannual arms fair, held over four days at the ExCeL Exhibition
centre in London’s Docklands, showcases cutting-edge weapons technology
as well as military hardware aimed at suppressing working class
rebellion. More than 1,000 arms manufacturers flaunt their wares,
including Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon and Bae Systems, and
Israel’s Elbit systems.
Financed by the taxpayer, via the UK Trade & Investment’s Defence
& Security Organisation (UKTI DSO), a government department, this
year’s event was the biggest ever. Over 30,000 people are estimated to
have attended from 61 countries, including 2,800 VIPs ranging from
senior generals to defence ministers.
The primary objective of UKTI DSO is to work on behalf of private
manufacturers to promote the sale of weapons to other countries. In
2014, the UK secured export deals for weaponry worth £8.5 billion and
security equipment worth £3.4 billion. The UK’s is now the world’s
second largest exporter of defence equipment, behind the United States.
Despots, murderers and human rights violators from Saudi Arabia,
Israel, Ukraine, Egypt, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Angola,
Azerbaijan, Iraq, Pakistan and Kazakhstan, were invited to the DSEI in
an official capacity, and accommodated throughout.
Given the nature of the regimes attending, it is hardly surprising
that investigations of past DSEI arms fairs uncovered the illegal trade
of torture implements such as electric shock stun guns and batons, leg
irons, and belly, body and gang chains. All of these are illegal under
British law.
One may be forgiven for thinking that those peddling such torture
devices had somehow slipped through the net of a rigorous checks
procedure. Yet it was found that implements for the use of torture were
on sale at DSEI in 2005, 2007, 2011 and 2013.
