Guns in Latin America: Key Challenges from the Most Violent Region on Earth
Carlos A. Pérez Ricart, Profesor Investigador Titular de la División de Estudios Internacionales del CIDE; Jerónimo Castillo; Alex Curry y Mónica Serrano escribieron el capítulo Guns in Latin America: Key Challenges from the Most Violent Region on Earth en el libro Gun Trafficking and Violence: From the Global Network to The Local Security Challenge.
Abstract
Latin America has been labeled as one of the most violent regions on Earth. With only 8% of the planet’s population, the region is the site of 33% of the world’s homicides. These homicides are mostly concentrated in four countries: Brazil, Colombia, México, and Venezuela. The main objective of the chapter is to present a general overview of the problem of gun trafficking in Latin America and its relation to violence. More concretely, it aims to examine the relationship between violence and arms availability among civilians in Latin America. The article is divided into three main parts. The first section examines the background to the security challenge in the region. The second presents the most important security challenges and examines key lessons learnt from these challenges. The final section offers three specific policy recommendations to address gun trafficking and violence in Latin America. Overall, the chapter contributes to the research fields of violence, criminality, and security in the region and calls for further comparative and empirical research that might address the main questions around the complex relationship between violence and small arms in Latin America.
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