From 27 August-7 September 2012, UN Member States will gather in New York for the second Review Conference (RevCon) of the UN Programme of Action on small arms (PoA). Following years of advocacy and effort by IANSA women around the world, we are beginning to see some tangible results in the UN small arms process. IANSA Women will continue to build on these successes at the review conference.
Advocacy and Campaigns
Members of the IANSA Women’s Network work are actively engaged in disarmament initiatives; ending gun violence in the home; awareness-raising about the problems of small arms availability and misuse; monitoring and evaluation of weapons disposal programmes, and in formulating long-term strategies to combat the global gun crisis.
From 2 to 27 July, negotiations are taking place at the UN headquarters in New York to draft and agree upon an Arms Trade Treaty. A week before the end of the Arms Trade Treaty negotiations, discussions among states are heating up. IANSA Women continue to advocate tirelessly for a strong treaty that can prevent gender-based violence.
We, advocates from all regions of the world, call for the inclusion of a criterion on gender-based violence in the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), as outlined in the Joint Policy Paper on Gender and the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) by Amnesty International, the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, the IANSA Women’s Network and Religions for Peace (June 2012).
We would like to congratulate everyone involved in another successful Global Week of Action Against Gun Violence. Events were organised all over the world with incredible levels of participation, impact and media coverage, illustrating again the diversity and strength of the global movement. IANSA Women were particularly active and built on advocacy successes in relation to the ATT and UNPoA, and the Disarm Domestic Violence campaign.
The UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, Ms. Angela Kane, has made a strong statement in support of our work during the Global Week of Action against Gun Violence, 11-17 June 2012. Referring to armed domestic violence and the gendered impact of small arms, she states, "illegal guns (...) make it possible (...) for illegal owners to intimidate their households and commit gender-based violence."
In her endorsement of the Week of Action, she highlights the importance of IANSA members' contributions in the area of small arms control: "The Global Week of Action against Gun Violence provides us with an opportunity to reflect on the important contribution civil society makes in the areas of small arms control and the prevention of armed violence. It is at the local level that we see the brave initiatives, that we see the commitment and perseverance flourish that in practice lead to more peaceful, more liveable communities. I call upon all governments to cultivate and intensify their cooperation with civil society on curbing armed violence in all its manifestations. On behalf of the United Nations, I commend the organizers of the Global Week of Action against Violence for their relentless effort as ‘peace multipliers’ in keeping gun violence on the agenda of the international community."
Building on feedback from participants during the 2011 Campaign, this year’s 16 Days Campaign will highlight three priority areas including one of specific importance to IANSA women, the role of small arms in domestic violence. This is testament to our engagement in the 16 days campaign to date and we look forward to ensuring that this issue gains the attention it so urgently requires.
As reported in the weekly IANSA Update of 17.05.12, IANSA women at EASSI in Uganda are holding their third training on the gender dimension of small arms with funding from the European Union through the Regional Centre on Small Arms (RECSA).
Following years of advocacy and effort by IANSA women around the world, we are beginning to see some tangible results in the UN small arms process. After the Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) on the UN Programme of Action on small arms (PoA), the Chair’s summary of elements for discussion at the Review Conference is now available and can support our work.
Between 19-23 March 2012 UN Member States met to prepare for the Review Conference of the Programme of Action on Small Arms (PoA), to be held in August 2012. IANSA Women were present at the meeting in New York, actively lobbying for gender mainstreaming in the PoA, and we were heartened to witness significant progress on this issue.
The Preparatory Committee and Review Conference of the Programme of Action (PoA) present an important opportunity to improve implementation of the PoA by making it more gender-responsive.
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