Lhe growth of the global economy may be slowing, but the market for “homeland security” equipment is booming, as demonstrated by the recent military and police show, Milipol Paris, held from 14 to November 17 in Villepinte (Seine-Saint-Denis). The event, under the patronage of the French Ministry of the Interior, attracted more than 30,000 delegates from 138 countries.
These delegates were able to visit a thousand exhibitors from around the world, who worked to sell their products to buyers from governments and security agencies. Researchers from civil society organizations, including Amnesty International and the Omega Research Foundation, found several booths marketing illegal torture equipment. Some items, including spiked batons, which can easily puncture the skin, and handcuffs which can damage the fine bones of the hand, are already illegal under European and French law.
I have compiled a list of 20 types of weapons and instruments of coercion that are inherently cruel, inhumane or degrading. These articles contravene the absolute prohibition of torture and are therefore illegal under international human rights law. They must be immediately withdrawn from production, promotion and trade.
A wide range of electroshock weapons
However, many of these items were available at Milipol Paris. A wide range of electroshock weapons, including batons, stun guns and even electroshock gloves, were promoted and in some cases even displayed in stands.
Human rights organizations – including Amnesty International in its December 2020 report “Ending the Torture Trade: The Path to Global Controls on Torture Tools” – have found that weapons of this type are being used in Saudi Arabia, Cambodia and Egypt in recent years.
In Egypt, suspected terrorists were hung from the ceiling by their limbs, handcuffed and blindfolded, while electric shocks were applied to their genitals and other sensitive parts of their bodies.
For a new international treaty
The Milipol Paris show also offered multi-barrel launchers and munitions containing multiple kinetic projectiles. These projectiles are presented as causing blunt force trauma, but in reality they often penetrate the skin and have been linked to a recent wave of mutilations and blindness during protests, particularly in Latin America.
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