Central and Eastern European Regional Training on the Gender-based Violence (GBV) Criteria in the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT)
14 -16 May 2019 – Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Riga Latvia
The Central and Eastern European Regional Training on the Gender-based Violence (GBV) Criteria in the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) brought together almost 30 representatives from 12 governments to learns in greater detail about the links between gender-based violence and arms transfer decisions and the application of the ATT risk-assessment criteria that fully take these into account these risks.
Drawing participants from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech Republic, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Serbia and Slovenia, the practical training aimed to build the capacity of government officials involved in the arms transfer decision-making process and to provide a forum for those working closely with arms trade issues nationally to discuss with their regional counterparts challenges and solutions to advancing the implementation of and strengthen compliance with the GBV criteria.
Expert speakers from Control Arms, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Women’s International League for Peace, and Freedom (WILPF) and Amnesty International facilitated sessions which explored
- Definitions and interpretations of GBV
- Review of how GBV must be considered under the Treaty: arts 6(3), 7(1), 7(4))
- Linkages between the ATT to other international and regional policy frameworks including International Human Rights Law, International Humanitarian Law and the Women Peace and Security Agenda, the UN Program on Small Arms and Light Weapons and EU Common Position on Arms Exports
- guidelines, structure and sources of information to review the prevalence of and responses to arms-related GBV in recipient states, considered
- explored mitigating measures or other approaches to reduce the risks in article 7(1)
Through hypothetical exercises and group discussions, participants applied lessons learned throughout the training and shared national perspectives and good practices.
This project was made possible with financial assistance from the UN Trust Facility Supporting Cooperation on Arms Regulation (UNSCAR) and with support from the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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Course Pack and Agenda
Reading Materials
Overview of the ATT
- 2013 Arms Trade Treaty.
- Arms Control Association, “The Arms Trade Treaty at a Glance,” 2016
- The New York Times, “Arms Trade Treaty Approved at U.N.” 2 April 2013
The ATT in International Law
- International Committee of the Red Cross, Understanding the Arms Trade Treaty from a Humanitarian Perspective, 2017
- International Committee of the Red Cross, “What is International Humanitarian Law?” 2004
- United Nations, “Protect Human Rights,” 2018
- International Committee of the Red Cross, “Arms Transfer Decisions: Applying International Humanitarian Law and International Human Rights Law Criteria ‒ a Practical Guide”, 2017
Gender and Gender-Based Violence
- World Health Organization, “Gender, Women and Health: What do we mean by ‘sex’ and ‘gender’?” 2019
- World Health Organization, “Gender, equity and human rights,” 2019
- Stanford University, “What is the difference between sex assigned at birth and gender identity?”
- Control Arms, “How to use the Arms Trade Treaty to address Gender-Based Violence: A Practical Guide for Risk Assessment”, 2018
- Reaching Critical Will, “Preventing Gender-based Violence through Arms Control”, 2016
- “Export and Export Assessment,” in Casey-Maslen et al., The Arms Trade Treaty: A Commentary, Oxford Commentaries on International Law, 2016
- The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, its Causes and Consequences, “15 Years of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, Its Causes and Consequences”, 2009
ATT Implementation and GBV Reduction and Prevention
- Control Arms, “How to use the Arms Trade Treaty to address Gender-Based Violence: A Practical Guide for Risk Assessment”, 2018
- Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, “Preventing Gender-Based Violence Through Arms Control: Tools and guidelines to implement the Arms Trade Treaty and UN Programme of Action”, 2016
- Rebecca Gerome, “Small weapons, big impact: Limit arms exports to reduce violence against women,” NATO Review, 2011
- Amnesty International, IANSA, Oxfam International (for the Control Arms campaign), “The Impact of Guns on Women’s Lives”, 2005
International Law and Policy and Gender-Based Violence
- Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, “Women, Weapons, and War: A Gendered Critique of Multilateral Instruments”, 2015
- Sustainable Development Goals
- UN Women, “Women and the Sustainable Development Goals, SDG 11”
- UNSC Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security
- Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, “Security Council Resolution 1325”
- United Nations Security Council, “Report of the Secretary-General on Women and Peace and Security”, 2018
- Office for Disarmament Affairs, “Securing Our Common Future, An Agenda for Disarmament”, 2018
- Reaching Critical Will, “Small Arms, Big Harms: A Call to Action by Civil Society On Gender and Small Arms Control”, 2018
Introduction to Article 7 Risk Assessment and its relationship with Articles 6 and 11
- International Committee of the Red Cross, “International Humanitarian Law and Gender-Based Violence in the Context of the Arms Trade Treaty”, April 2019
- International Human Rights Clinic at Harvard Law School, “Interpreting the Arms Trade Treaty: International Human Rights Law and Gender-Based Violence in Article 7 Risk Assessments,” 2019
- Reaching Critical Will, Article 7(4) in the ATT (video)
Gender-Based Violence in Articles 6 and 7
- International Committee of the Red Cross, “International Humanitarian Law and Gender-Based Violence in the Context of the Arms Trade Treaty,” April 2019
- International Human Rights Clinic at Harvard Law School, “Interpreting the Arms Trade Treaty: International Human Rights Law and Gender-Based Violence in Article 7 Risk Assessments,” 2019
- Reaching Critical Will, “Preventing Gender-Based Violence Through Arms Control,” 2016
Building an Evidence Base on Gender-Based Violence
- UNICEF, “Measuring taboo topics: List Randomization for Research on Gender-based Violence”
- Control Arms, “How to use the Arms Trade Treaty to address Gender-Based Violence: A Practical Guide for Risk Assessment”, 2018
- United Nations, “Indicators to Measure Violence Against Women”
Mitigating Measures
- Amnesty International, Applying the Arms Trade Treaty to Ensure the Protection of Human Rights, 2015
- “Export and Export Assessment” in Casey-Maslen et al., The Arms Trade Treaty: A Commentary, Oxford Commentaries on International Law, 2016
- Control Arms, “How to use the Arms Trade Treaty to address Gender-Based Violence: A Practical Guide for Risk Assessment”, 2018
Other Resources
The South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC), offers a holistic and integrated approach to the Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) control policies in South East Europe (SEE). SEESAC initiated the development of this gender and SALW Study with a long-term vision to increase gender responsiveness of SALW Control policies in SEE. The study lends light to evidence based recommendations into practical and contextual gender specific responsive measures related to SALW interventions.
The South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC), GENDER AND SALW IN SOUTH EAST EUROPE: MAIN CONCERNS AND POLICY RESPONSE, 2016
The South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC), ROADMAP for a sustainable solution to the illegal possession, misuse and trafficking of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) and their ammunition in the Western Balkans by 2024, 2016
The South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC), Latest from SEESAC and Broader Work, 2019
The South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC), Resources On Gender and Security and SALW, 2013-2018
Additional photos from the training can be found here.