Yesterday I noticed an intriguing new map called, London Arms Trade, by Boringlovechild. It shows the locations of the offices of weapons manufacturers and distributors in London. I wrote a note to the map's author to find out more.
The map is part of the Campaign Against the Arms Trade, which is a grassroots organization which has been active since 1974. Robin Yu sent me back this quote to explain the project:
"Recently a local London group was set up, determined to highlight the immorality of the 'defence' industry. I undertook to create this map using CAAT resources and the British Defence Industry Directory (Online), to begin to pinpoint those involved in making London the capital of the world arms-broking trade.
"Certain things are immediately obvious. The first is the concentration of the big arms companies in the centre of the city. Companies like BAE, Raytheon and Rolls Royce are as much a part of the establishment as they can physically be: not surprising when the Defence Export Services Organisation, based on New Oxford Street, is a government agency that identifies potential opportunities for arms sales, then works with the companies and other elements of government to push for deals. In other words, civil servants are paid with our taxes to encourage the export of death.
"Until now, many of these death merchants have basked in anonymity. LRLIH, which owns the company responsible for agreeing to supply military trucks to Sudan despite the ongoing crisis in Darfur, has an office on Haymarket, a couple of minutes from the tourists of Leicester Square and Trafalgar Square. The fact is that we walk by these companies on our way to theatres, pubs and shops without even knowing they are there. This map is the beginning of an attempt to redress that."
The organization is planning to hold demonstrations outside the offices of three London dealers on March 19th.
Recent Comments