WILPF Promotes Gender Perspectives in Disarmament in Colombia
One of the objectives of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) is to provide tools and guidelines for effective implementation of provisions related to gender-based violence found in the ATT and the UN PoA on SALW. In Latin America, significant work was undertaken by WILPF in Colombia. The national Section (La Liga Internacional de Mujeres por la Paz y la Libertad - LIMPAL) commissioned a report on the implications of UNSCR 1325 on disarmament with a focus on the national context. A roundtable in June 2016 further explored this research, by highlighting the two tracks towards disarmament being pursued by Colombia. The first is via the disarmament provisions in the then-proposed peace plan between the government and the FARC-EP, and the second via commitments made through the ATT, which Colombia has signed but not ratified. This research was also presented and shared during bilateral advocacy meetings that took place on the margins of BMS6 and also during a side event at the Second Conference of States Parties to the ATT (CSP2). It was also presented at a regional meeting in Iraq in September 2016, and during meetings in Colombia in June 2016.
The above described activities are part of a larger programme of work as funded via UNSCAR for activities in 2015 and 2016. National level advocacy and research took place in Cameroon, Colombia, Spain, and Sweden as well as at an international level. In Cameroon, the national WILPF Section conducted research on SALW legislation in the region and held a capacity building exercise with government authorities, civil society, and UN Women. WILPF Sweden coordinated a WILPF Africa meeting in collaboration with Sections in the region; one session focused on the ATT, UNPoA, and SALW proliferation and their gender implications. WILPF Sweden and WILPF Cameroon have been collaborating beyond this project to build capacity on the national level in Cameroon and reach a broader audience in the region. WILPF Spain has focused on building capacity within the Section, focusing on outreach to civil society colleagues and conducting research into the Spanish arms trade, including interviews with government officials and assisting with the writing of the case study on Spain. WILPF Spain also translated "Preventing gender-based violence" into Spanish. These reports are available online and were presented during a side event at CSP2.
WILPF Gender in the ATT and PoA
01/01/2015 - 31/12/2016
Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF)
Address: Rue de Varembé 1, Case Postale 28, 1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland
Telephone: +41 (0) 22 919 70 80
Fax: +41 (0) 22 919 70 81
Email: secretariat@wilpf.ch
Website: http://wilpf.org/