Conflict
Fortunately most of us do not know what it is like to have a gun pointed at us, to live in a war zone or to fight in a conflict. But sadly for many people, this is a daily reality. In 2002 there were 42 violent conflicts in the world. The world has seen more conflict in the last 20 years then at any time in the last century.
While much attention is paid to so-called weapons of mass destruction, (i.e. nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons), it is the ordinary conventional weapons, such as AK-47s, landmines, tanks, and fighter aircraft, which are responsible for the vast majority of casualties in the world's conflicts. As almost anyone who listens to the news can tell, conventional weapons are responsible for the death, wounding and movement of countless numbers of people every year.