While the arms industry, locally and internationally, has vehement opponents who argue that a proliferation of arms is not in the interests of global peace and security, advocates say it is for exactly those reasons that nations should have capable defence forces and viable export-based industries.

One such proponent is Helmoed-Romer Heitman, a Cape Town-based analyst for Jane's Defence Weekly, the respected international defence journal.

Heitman believes that any country with a viable industry has obvious advantages over a country that doesn't.

A country that had a basic capacity to produce its own arms became "a clever buyer" when in the market to purchase and was "less vulnerable to being taken for a ride by sellers", he said.

A vibrant arms industry was crucial to strategic independence, Heitman said.

A country that bought all its equipment, spare parts, ammunition and so on from foreign sources would find itself dependent and vulnerable if it became involved in or found itself close to a conflict zone, he said.

Suppliers could easily turn around and say "you are now in a conflict zone, we can't supply you any longer".

These were just some of the reasons why South Africa would want to have a thriving industry that could export its products to make the industry more viable.

The local industry was also able to fund development research with the proceeds of its arms sales.

As for the debate in South Africa about how much the government should reveal about its arms sales, Heitman said "many customers actually want confidentiality - why tell people what you have when they can find out the hard way?"

Most countries did not want to advertise what they purchased "for good military reasons".

"It's not always that they are ripping off their taxpayers at home, although sometimes they are," he says.

Willem Steenkamp, a defence expert, said the government found itself in the classic dilemma that every arms-manufacturing country faced sooner or later: ethics versus real politik; a debate in which ethics is often the loser.

The original motivation behind the Arms Control Bill was essentially the strong feeling in some ANC circles that the government should be a "merchant of death" like its predecessor, by selling arms and munitions to virtually any country with the money to pay for them or the ability to provide a political quid pro quo.

Having settled in, though, the government was faced with the reality that the real or perceived national interest might well require dealings with nations whose systems did not conform to accepted democratic norms or that were involved in actual or potential shooting wars.

For example, the South African government has a close relationship with India, which is undoubtedly democratic, but which has fought a territorial war with Pakistan - currently a dictatorship - several times, and is involved in a tense stand-off with its neighbour.

With acknowledgements to Andre Koopman, Jeremy Michaels and Sunday Independent.