Chemical Control: Regulation of Incapacitating Chemical Agent Weapons, Riot Control Agents and their Means of Delivery PDF
Preview Chemical Control: Regulation of Incapacitating Chemical Agent Weapons, Riot Control Agents and their Means of Delivery
Chemical Control Regulation of Incapacitating Chemical Agent Weapons, Riot Control Agents and their Means of Delivery Michael Crowley GlobalIssuesSeries GeneralEditor:JimWhitman Thisexcitingseriesencompassesthreeprincipalthemes:theinteractionofhumanandnatural systems; cooperation and conflict; and the enactment of values. The series as a whole places anemphasisontheexaminationofcomplexsystemsandcausalrelationsinpoliticaldecision- making;problemsofknowledge;authority,controlandaccountabilityinissuesofscale;andthe reconciliationofconflictingvaluesandcompetingclaims.Throughouttheseriestheconcentra- tionisonanintegrationofexistingdisciplinestowardstheclarificationofpoliticalpossibilityas wellasimpendingcrises. Titlesinclude: BerhanykunAndemicaelandJohnMathiason ELIMINATINGWEAPONSOFMASSDESTRUCTION ProspectsforEffectiveInternationalVerification RobertBoardman GOVERNANCEOFEARTHSYSTEMS ScienceandItsUses MikeBourne ARMINGCONFLICT TheProliferationofSmallArms JohnN.ClarkeandGeoffreyR.Edwards(editors) GLOBALGOVERNANCEINTHETWENTY-FIRSTCENTURY MalcolmDando NEUROSCIENCEANDTHEFUTUREOFCHEMICAL-BIOLOGICALWEAPONS NeilDavison “NON-LETHAL”WEAPONS NicoleDeitelhoffandKlausDieterWolf(editors) CORPORATESECURITYRESPONSIBILITY? CorporateGovernanceContributionstoPeaceandSecurityinZonesofConflict ToniErskine(editors) CANINSTITUTIONSHAVERESPONSIBILITIES? CollectiveMoralAgencyandInternationalRelations MoiraFeil GLOBALGOVERNANCEANDCORPORATERESPONSIBILITYINCONFLICTZONES AnnegretFlohr,LotharRieth,SandraSchwindenhammerandKlausDieterWolf THEROLEOFBUSINESSINGLOBALGOVERNANCE CorporationsasNorm-Entrepreneurs AnnegretFlohr SELF-REGULATIONANDLEGALIZATION MakingGlobalRulesforBanksandCorporations BethK.Greener THENEWINTERNATIONALPOLICING DavidKarpandKurtMills(editors) HUMANRIGHTSPROTECTIONINGLOBALPOLITICS TheResponsibilitiesofStatesandNon-StateActors AlexanderKelle,KathrynNixdorffandMalcolmDando CONTROLLINGBIOCHEMICALWEAPONS AdaptingMultilateralArmsControlforthe21stCentury KelleyLee HEALTHIMPACTSOFGLOBALIZATION(editor) TowardsGlobalGovernance KelleyLee GLOBALIZATIONANDHEALTH AnIntroduction CatherineLu JUSTANDUNJUSTINTERVENTIONSINWORLDPOLITICS PublicandPrivate RobertL.OstergardJr.(editor) HIV,AIDSANDTHETHREATTONATIONALANDINTERNATIONALSECURITY GrahamS.Pearson THEUNSCOMSAGA ChemicalandBiologicalWeaponsNon-Proliferation GrahamS.Pearson THESEARCHFORIRAQ’SWEAPONSOFMASSDESTRUCTION Inspection,VerificationandNon-Proliferation NickRitchie ANUCLEARWEAPONS-FREEWORLD? Britain,TridentandtheChallengesAhead JulianSchofield STRATEGICNUCLEARSHARING DavidScott “THECHINESECENTURY”? TheChallengetoGlobalOrder AndrewTaylor STATEFAILURE MarcoVerweijandMichaelThompson(editors) CLUMSYSOLUTIONSFORACOMPLEXWORLD Governance,PoliticsandPluralPerceptions MarcoVerweij CLUMSYSOLUTIONSFORAWICKEDWORLD HowtoImproveGlobalGovernance GlobalIssuesSeries SeriesStandingOrderISBN978–0–333–79483–8 (outsideNorthAmericaonly) Youcanreceivefuturetitlesinthisseriesastheyarepublishedbyplacingastandingorder.Please contactyourbookselleror,incaseofdifficulty,writetousattheaddressbelowwithyourname andaddress,thetitleoftheseriesandtheISBNquotedabove. CustomerServicesDepartment,MacmillanDistributionLtd,Houndmills,Basingstoke,Hampshire RG216XS,England Chemical Control Regulation of Incapacitating Chemical Agent Weapons, Riot Control Agents and their Means of Delivery Michael Crowley UniversityofBradford,UK Palgrave macmillan ©MichaelCrowley2016 Foreword©AlastairHay2016 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2016 978-1-137-46713-3 Allrightsreserved.Noreproduction,copyortransmissionofthis publicationmaybemadewithoutwrittenpermission. Noportionofthispublicationmaybereproduced,copiedortransmitted savewithwrittenpermissionorinaccordancewiththeprovisionsofthe Copyright,DesignsandPatentsAct1988,orunderthetermsofanylicence permittinglimitedcopyingissuedbytheCopyrightLicensingAgency, SaffronHouse,6–10KirbyStreet,LondonEC1N8TS. Anypersonwhodoesanyunauthorizedactinrelationtothispublication maybeliabletocriminalprosecutionandcivilclaimsfordamages. Theauthorhasassertedhisrighttobeidentifiedastheauthorofthiswork inaccordancewiththeCopyright,DesignsandPatentsAct1988. Firstpublished2016by PALGRAVEMACMILLAN PalgraveMacmillanintheUKisanimprintofMacmillanPublishersLimited, registeredinEngland,companynumber785998,ofHoundmills,Basingstoke, HampshireRG216XS. PalgraveMacmillanintheUSisadivisionofStMartin’sPressLLC, 175FifthAvenue,NewYork,NY10010. PalgraveMacmillanistheglobalacademicimprintoftheabovecompanies andhascompaniesandrepresentativesthroughouttheworld. Palgrave®andMacmillan®areregisteredtrademarksintheUnitedStates, theUnitedKingdom,Europeandothercountries. ISBN978-1-349-55565-9 ISBN978-1-137-46714-0(eBook) DOI 10.1057/9781137467140 Thisbookisprintedonpapersuitableforrecyclingandmadefromfully managedandsustainedforestsources.Logging,pulpingandmanufacturing processesareexpectedtoconformtotheenvironmentalregulationsofthe countryoforigin. AcataloguerecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary. AcatalogrecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheLibraryofCongress. Contents ListofFiguresandTables vi ForewordbyAlastairHay vii Acknowledgements xi ListofAbbreviations xii 1 Introduction 1 2 IncapacitatingChemicalAgentWeapons 9 3 RiotControlAgents 39 4 MeansofDeliveringorDispersingRiotControlAgents 88 5 ApplicationoftheChemicalWeaponsConventionto ICAWeapons,RiotControlAgentsandRelatedMeansof Delivery 107 6 ArmsControlandDisarmamentAgreementsApplicableto ICAWeaponsandRiotControlAgents 134 7 InternationalHumanitarianLawApplicabletoICAWeapons andRiotControlAgents 152 8 HumanRightsLawApplicabletoICAWeaponsandRiot ControlAgents 166 9 InternationalCriminalLawApplicabletoICAWeaponsand RiotControlAgents 190 10 MechanismstoRegulatetheTransferofICAWeapons,Riot ControlAgentsandRelatedMeansofDelivery 199 11 ApplicationoftheUnitedNationsDrugControlConventions toICAWeapons 223 12 TheRoleofCivilSocietyinCombatingtheMisuseof IncapacitatingChemicalAgentsandRiotControlAgents 229 13 ConclusionsandRecommendations 263 Notes 278 Index 372 v Figures and Tables Figures 2.1 Biochemicalthreatspectrum 10 2.2 Selectedindicativedrugclassesandchemicalswithpotential utilityasICAweapons 11 Tables 3.1 ComparativeestimatedtoxicityforhumansofselectedRCAs 40 3.2 AllegedinappropriateuseofRCAsandtheirmeansofdelivery bylawenforcementofficialsfrom1stJanuary2009to31st December2013 51 vi Foreword Severaltimesoverthelast25yearsIhavehadtoprovideexpertevidencefor the courts on the effects of exposure to riot control agents. Fortunately, in allbutoneoftheseinstancesthepersonwhowasaffectedbythechemical agentsurvivedandwithoutseriousilleffects.Tragically,inoneinstancethe mandiedandthejuryinthatcaseruledthatdeathwasduetoacombina- tionofexposuretotheriotcontrolagentCSandtopositionalasphyxia,the latterbroughtaboutbythewayinwhichseveralpolicemenheldhimonthe ground. Findingtheevidencenecessarytomakemyreportsforthesecaseswould havebeenamuchsimpleraffairifIhadhadaccesstothisbookofMichael Crowley’s.ThisistheresourceIwouldturntoifIwantedtogetdetailsabout thetoxicpropertiesofindividualagentsandifIneededsomethingasarcane asadiscussionontheirshelflife,becausesomepoliceforcewasusingupold stock. Butforme,themostdisturbingmaterialMichaelCrowleyhasassembled isinhisthirdchapter,ontheinappropriateuseofriotcontrolagents.These agents have been deployed almost universally to assist police forces when crowdsgetoutofcontrol.Theyareanadditiontothepolice’sarmoury,and meanttohelpavoidresorttomoreextrememeasuressuchasbatonsorguns. Inotherwords,thesechemicalagentsareasortofinterfacebetweendoing nothingandpossiblyshootingtoregaincontrolofthestreets.Becausethey are so irritant, at very low air concentrations, when anyone is exposed to themandtheireyesstarttosmartandbreathinghurts,thegeneralreaction istoleavethesceneandfindsomefreshair.ThisiscertainlyhowIresponded wheninadvertentlyexposedtoCSinRomemanyyearsagowhenIturneda cornerandfoundmyselfinacloudofthechemical,dischargedintoagroup ofdemonstratorsprotestingabouttheneedforabortionlawreform. Regrettably, many of those enforcing the law use riot control agents in waysthatwereneverintendedand,insodoing,endangerlives.Ninety-five countriesaredocumentedinChapter3becausetheyusedriotcontrolagents inwaysthatwereadirectviolationofhumanrights.Theevidenceforthese abuses has been collected by many different organizations over the years, evidence which Crowley has abstracted, detailed and assembled in tabular form.Underheadingswhichrangefromtortureandill-treatment,through suppression of assembly, indiscriminate and excessive use, deployment in enclosedspaces toserious injuryor deaths,thestatisticsmake for grimbut absolutely essential reading. For the evidence is accumulating that some form of guidance is urgently needed on how riot control agents are used. Theabusesareincreasing.Thisisnotwhatwasmeanttohappen.Butunless vii viii Foreword thereisclearguidanceonappropriateuseofriotcontrolagentsanyonewith a grievance who happens to be in a demonstration may find themselves opposedincreasinglybylawenforcementofficerswhofeeltheyhaveafree rein. This concern is amplified by the evidence that Michael assembles about delivery systems for munitions containing riot control agents or any other crowd control chemical. Why would a country wish to have a vehicle- mounted, automatic grenade launcher that can discharge 200 grenades in a minute? Just who will be the recipient of such a weapon? We will know at some point as the launcher is currently being promoted by an ordnance companyinChina.ButChinaisnotaloneindevelopingthesedeliverysys- temsthatarereallythepreserveofthemilitary.DetailedinChapter4area range of “wide area” RCA means of delivery including large calibre mortar munitions or other projectiles, some weighing many kilograms and which can be fired over many kilometres. Turkey, Russia, China and the United States appear to have wanted (or at least to have developed and in certain casesmarketed)suchdevices. The military should not be interested in deploying riot control agents as they are forbidden in armed conflict, as Crowley explains. If not to be used in wars, however, how does one explain these delivery systems that candrophugequantitiesofhighlyirritantchemicalsinpreciselocationsin a matter of seconds? Are there other intentions behind such delivery sys- tems? Are they meant for those regimes that prop themselves up through fear or other restrictive measures? Regrettably, because riot control agents are legal for law enforcement purposes, and law enforcement has not been adequately defined in the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) which prohibitschemicalwarfare,certainStatesmayfeelfreetodecidewhatthey useforcontrollingcrowds. Another grey area in the CWC is incapacitants. Although these too have no universallyagreeddefinition,in general theyare regardedas substances that will cause a prolonged, but non-permanent disability, and they gener- allyoperatebyaffectingthecentralnervoussystem.Anumberofcountries areveryinterestedinthesesubstances,whichcametoprominenceinOcto- ber 2002 when they were used to incapacitate heavily armed Chechen separatistswhowereholding900peoplehostageinatheatreinMoscow.The separatists had threatened to kill all the hostages and negotiations to end thestandoffwerestilldeadlockedafterthreedays.UsingtheMoscowsewer system, Russian Spetsnaz special forces gained entry to the theatre where theyreleasedahighlyvolatileanaesthetizingagentthroughtheventilation systemandintotheseatingareawhereeveryonewasbeingheld. Toensurerapidincapacitationofthoseseatedfurthestfromtheairvents, hugequantitiesoftheagentwerereleased.Sedationhappenedfairlyrapidly for most. Thirty minutes after release of the incapacitant, which was later identified as derivatives of the anaesthetic opiate fentanyl, special forces Foreword ix stormed the building and killed all the separatists. But because this was carriedoutsosecretly,noneofthoseattendingtothesedatedhostageshad any idea what had been used. The doctors who treated those affected were also in the dark. The huge quantities of the chemical used delivered many timesthelethaldosetothoseseatedclosetotheairvents.Theoutcomewas inevitable.Onehundredandtwenty-fivediedfromtheeffectsoftheopiate mixturewhichslowsbreathing,and,inhighdoses,stopsitcompletely. The fact that the majority of the hostages were saved was viewed by Russia as an overwhelming successful outcome to the siege. Many other governmentsthoughtlikewise.Facedwithasimilarsituationtheytooliked the idea of being able to resort to a chemical that would deliver a rapid knockout dose to hostage takers. This interest persists. Countries can use whatever incapacitant they choose if it is for law enforcement. And they do not have to declare what they have in their policing arsenal. This is a worrying development and requires international action. The real problem isindefininglawenforcementandavoidinggraduationintoarmedconflict whereincapacitantuseisstrictlyforbidden. Thesearchfortheidealincapacitantison.Thiswouldbeonepossessing an enormous safety factor – the outcome of which is a dose that will only incapacitate rather than kill. But it is a fool’s errand. There are no chemi- calsatpresentthatcomeanywherenearprovidingasufficientsafetyfactor. Taken together with how incapacitants are likely to be deployed, there are unlikely to be situations where everyone will survive. Crowley covers this groundsuperblyinhistext. What is also impressive about this book is the way in which it has been assembled. It is designed in such a way that anyone wishing to find ways ofapplyingsomekindofregulatorymechanismtocontroluseofarmswill findinvaluable.Crowleyusestheterm‘HolisticArmsControl’.Heenvisages that it will first involve an exploration of weapons and related technology thatrequirecontrol,followedbyreviewofapplicablelawsandtreatiesand thensynthesizingallintoanapproachthatwillfacilitateregulation. Crowley’s key concerns are the incapacitants and riot control agents. He providesevidencethroughoutthisbookthatthesesubstancesrequireagree- mentattheinternationallevelonwhatconstitutesappropriateuse.Butwhat healsoprovidesisthemechanismtohelpachievethis.Byfurnishinguswith the properties of these chemicals, how they can be deployed, what treaties governtheiruseatpresentbutalsohowlawsonhumanrightsandcontrolof drugsaswellasinternationalhumanitarianandcriminallawcanbebrought tobear,hemakesthetasksomucheasier. None of what Crowley would like to see happen will be achieved if no oneacts.Sohispenultimatechapterishowcivilsociety,youandIinother words, can work together to bring about change. Civil society is a broad church and there will be many interest groups. Some will focus on ethical principles, for example concerning those trying to find ideal incapacitants
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