- The DPRTE arms fair takes place every year at the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff. The event is happening today.
- DPRTE brings small and larger arms companies together to network and make deals with UK and international buyers
- The Arms fair will be met with protests and opposition, including a day of action at the Motorpoint Arena
Activists are holding a day of action to disrupt the DPRTE arms fair taking place in Cardiff on 16 March. The protest will include music, theater, a meditation against the arms fair
and direct action to try and disrupt the event.
According to its website, DPRTE (the Defence Procurement, Research, Technology and Exportability exhibition) arms fair is the UK’s Premier Defence Procurement Event
. Since October 2014 the exhibition has been held annually at the Cardiff Motorpoint Arena, having been forced out of Bristol following mass protests.
DPRTE allows small arms companies to tout for business with larger ones, such as BAE Systems, Lockheed Martin and Boeing, all of whom have sold weapons to human rights abusers and all of whom are listed among the attendees.
Local activist Lleucu Williams, who is part of the Stop the Cardiff Arms Fair group, commented:
It’s shocking that the Motorpoint Arena would welcome arms dealers to do their deadly business in the middle of Cardiff. Activists in Bristol managed to chase the arms fair out of their city- and we’ve resolved to show the arms dealers that there is no welcome for them in Wales either. We are protesting because we want to send the loud and clear message that arms dealers are not welcome in Cardiff.
Kat Hobbs of Campaign Against Arms Trade said:
The DPRTE arms fair exists to help smaller arms companies to sell to larger weapons manufacturers and government. Big companies such as BAE Systems and Lockheed Martin, whose weaponry has been implicated in serious human rights abuses, will be there shopping for parts. Every cog and circuit board that goes into a piece of weaponry is crucial to it’s operation, and that’s why we want to hold these companies accountable.
PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE PROTESTS ARE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST
ENDS
For further information please contact Andrew at media(at)caat·org·uk or call 020 7281 0297 or 07990 673232.
