Tools of Torture and Repression in South America SECTION III: PRODUCTION AND TRADE OF SOUTH AMERICAN LAW ENFORCEMENT EQUIPMENT III.I OVERVIEW South American manufacture of law enforcement equipment is carried out by both state- and privately-owned companies. Compared with other regions, the arms manufacturing industry in South America is quite small; however, there is a trend in several states, particularly Argentina and Brazil,140 of increasing investment in the national production of law enforcement equipment. This has led to various state-owned companies increasing their range and volume of manufacturing of equipment such as small arms, ammunition and chemical irritants. In addition, a number of non-state companies have grown exponentially, developing large manufacturing capabilities and selling their products in domestic and foreign markets. State-owned companies The following table provides information on the production of law enforcement equipment mentioned in the previous section only. Company ownership provides states with an additional control over the manufacture and trade of law enforcement equipment, but also comes with human rights obligations. The production of goods with no use other than for the purposes of torture or other forms of illtreatment, or the transfer of law enforcement equipment to actors with a proven record of repression and torture using such equipment, would likely amount to a violation of international law. However, as has been pointed out by Omega and the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) in a previous report,141 there is a risk of undue political influence being brought to bear when states both issue export licences and own the factories producing law enforcement equipment. Rather than recommending state ownership of arms factories, Omega emphasises the added responsibility of states when they hold an ownership stake in such factories. Company Name Country General Directorate of Argentina Military Manufacturers – La Dirección General de Fabricaciones Militares (DGFM) Bolivian Munitions Bolivia Factory – Fabrica Boliviana de Munición (FBM) Law Enforcement Equipment Produced / Supplied142 Small arms and small arms ammunition. DGFM’s 12 gauge shotgun cartridges designed for riot control contain 24 rubber pellets. DGFM also produces 12 gauge shotgun cartridges containing nine spherical lead pellets. Both types of ammunition are used by Argentinian security forces.143 As well as manufacturing small arms ammunition, FBM also imports small arms from Brazilian Company Taurus and Czech company Sellier & Bellot. FBM also imports riot control equipment from Brazilian company Condor Non-Lethal 140 Guy Anderson and Matthew Smith, ‘South America’s defence industrial rebirth: Strategies, drivers, capabilities and implications for the global markets’, HIS Jane’s Intelligence Briefing, 2 August 2012. 141 Omega Research Foundation and Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), Aiming for Control: The need to include ammunition in the Arms Trade Treaty, 2013, p. 28. 142 Please note that equipment designed exclusively for military or civilian use is not included in this column and the companies listed may also manufacture other types of law enforcement equipment. 143 Dirección General de Fabricaciones Militares, <http://www.fab-militares.gov.ar/municiones-de-bajocalibre/> [accessed 31 May 2016]. 33