New publication on gender-based violence and the Arms Trade Treaty
This briefing paper aims to provide some background on the terminology around GBV and to highlight questions that will be relevant for risk assessments under article 6 and 7 of the Arms Trade Treaty.
The ATT is the first ever legally-binding regime that recognises the link between gender-based violence (GBV) and the international arms trade. Under the ATT it is illegal to transfer weapons if there is a risk that the weapons will be used to facilitate GBV (article 7(4)). In practice, this means that those conducting risk assessment processes for the export and import of weapons will have to take into account legislative and normative factors around GBV in the recipient countries. Effective implementation of this provision will help prevent GBV. It will also help build understanding about risks and dangers in potential recipient countries and about the links between the international arms trade and GBV more broadly. This in turn will enable more effective protection of human rights and prevention of armed violence.
The Spanish version of this publication can be found here.
Published by Reaching Critical Will in August 2015
We are delighted to offer the online version for free, but please consider making a donation to Reaching Critical Will to help us cover the costs of producing this book and the other materials and information services that Reaching Critical Will provides.