New Delhi, March 13: Weapons shatter a million dreams every year, many in the insurgent-ravaged Northeast. Now, a unique global initiative called the Million Faces Campaign is trying to ensure that the war against proliferation of small arms does not remain a faceless effort.

Four states of the Northeast ? Manipur, Nagaland, Meghalaya and Assam ? have been identified as focus areas for the global campaign organised by Amnesty International, Oxfam and the International Network Action on Small Arms in association with hundreds of NGOs.

The idea is to collect a million photos and self-portraits from around the world in support of the crusade. The campaign will be simultaneously launched on March 16 in several cities and continue for 100 days, till June 26, to coincide with a UN conference on arms control in New York.

“We will use these faces to send a powerful, global message of support to the world’s governments for an international arms trade treaty,” says a promotional blurb in the official website of the campaign.

A representative of Amnesty International said the target for India was to collect 30,000 photos and self-portraits.

Every year, around the world, roughly half a million men, women and children are killed with small arms.

Countries in Africa and South America are the worst sufferers, but India’s Northeast also faces the problem in no small measure because militant groups have easy access to international arms smuggling networks.

Organisations campaigning against proliferation of small arms believe the menace can be controlled only if governments worldwide collaborate and decide to sign and ratify a global treaty.

Such a treaty could have far-reaching implications for the Northeast since arms are sourced from various destinations.

Despite repeated requests by Delhi, neighbouring Bangladesh and Myanmar have yet to check the easy availability of unlicensed firearms.