Statements by RCW
Joint Statement to the Tenth Conference of States Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty on Arms Trade with Israel
The following joint statement from the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), the International Service for Human Rights, and Al-Haq was delivered at the Tenth Conference of States Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty on 21 August 2024.
Thank you, Mr. President,
This statement is being delivered on behalf of the International Service for Human Rights, the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, and Al-Haq. In 2014, when the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) entered into force, those who have been actively involved in the adoption of the treaty hoped that it would make a difference in reducing the human suffering caused by weapons and war. Ten years later, it is clear that the ATT States parties have fallen short of its promise, with thousands of people around the world experiencing direct harm from the arms trade. We are faced with serious challenges in the implementation of the ATT, where actors with the power and capacity to protect people lack the...
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Civil Society Statement on Gender and Intersectionality to the 2024 NPT Preparatory Committee
23 July 2024 This statement was written and delivered by Ray Acheson, Director of Reaching Critical Will of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), to the Second Session of the Preparatory Committee for the Eleventh Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). The statement was endorsed by an additional 16 civil society organisations. For many years, WILPF has been articulating the ways that gender is relevant to nuclear weapons. We will keep talking about this for as long as it takes policies to change, but it’s also important to move beyond the limited engagement with gender that has so far been allowed in draft outcome documents and summaries of meetings. What we’ve achieved so far in the NPT space is not sufficient—not in terms of transforming understanding what gender considerations bring to the table, and definitely not in terms of achieving nuclear disarmament. One way that gender is relevant for understanding nuclear weapons is...
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WILPF Statement to the Fourth Review Conference of the UN Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat, and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects
Emma Bjertén, the Programme Manager of Reaching Critical Will, delivered WILPF's statement to the Fourth Review Conference (RevCon4) of the UN Programme of Action (UNPoA) to Prevent, Combat, and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects on 20 June 2024.
20 June 2024
Thank you, Ambassador.
I am speaking on behalf of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), the world’s oldest feminist peace organisation. With 42 National Sections operating in all global regions, the issue of illicit trade and proliferation of small arms is something that in different ways impact us all.
For a long time, the UN Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat, and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) in All Its Aspects was what we call “gender blind”. It didn’t acknowledge the differential impacts the proliferation of illicit SALW have on people of different genders and backgrounds; it did not provide...
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WILPF Statement to the Meeting of the Arms Trade Treaty Sub-Working Group on Current and Emerging Implementation Issues
21 February 2024 On 21 February 2024, the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) Working Group on Effective Treaty Implementation held the first meeting of its sub-working group on current and emerging implementation issues. One of the agenda items for this discussion was arms transfers to Israel. Due to time limitations, WILPF was not able to deliver its statement during the session but is publishing it online. Last year, during the preparatory meeting of CSP9, WILPF delivered a statement expressing concern that there had been little consideration about the humanitarian and human rights impacts of the arms trade during ATT meetings. We strongly welcome the development of this sub-working group on current and emerging implementation issues and the convening of this particular meeting on Israel’s war on Gaza. Addressing arms transfers that may violate the ATT is essential to assure the Treaty’s credibility and to concretise the ATT’s aim to reduce human suffering. The ATT sits within the existing...
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WILPF Statement on the Escalation of Violence in Palestine and Israel
WILPF is deeply saddened at the ongoing and escalating loss of life in Palestine and Israel, which take place in the context of ongoing Israeli occupation, war crimes and impunity. We denounce all attacks against civilians by all parties. Indiscriminate attacks on civilians are a crime under international law and cannot be justified.
States are a collective of peoples in all our diversity with a right to self-determination and to a free, dignified and safe life. Permanent peace is built on the foundations of freedom, justice, nonviolence, human rights and equality. Colonialism, occupation, apartheid policies, and militarised security have denied the possibilities for peace. Despite multiple UN resolutions and repeated calls, Israel has not ended its illegal occupation.
Current attacks must be seen in the context of an escalation of militarised activities in recent years by Israel's hardline new government and in conjunction with decades of continued and repeated...
Civil Society Statement to the 13th Article XIV Conference on Facilitating Entry into Force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty
On 22 September 2023, Emma Bjertén of Reaching Critical Will delivered a joint civil society statement, coordinated by the Arms Control Association, to the 13th Article XIV Conference on Facilitating Entry into Force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.
Since the conclusion of the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), which has been signed by 186 countries, nuclear testing has become taboo.
All CTBT states parties agree that the treaty prohibits “any nuclear weapons test explosion, or any other nuclear explosion,” no matter what the yield. The CTBT Organization operates a fully functional International Monitoring System (IMS) to detect and deter cheating.
Most nuclear-armed states that have not signed or not ratified the CTBT, including India, Israel, and Pakistan, are currently observing nuclear testing moratoria. Even though the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) announced in January 2020 it "will no longer observe its self-imposed...
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WILPF Statement to the Human Rights Council on Disarming the Enablers of the Firearms Industry
WILPF submitted a written statement to the 54th session of the Human Rights Council in response to the report of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on the impact of firearms. WILPF's statement calls for an end to impunity of the firearms industry and those who enable it. 23 August 2023 WILPF has long argued and demonstrated that as long as firearms exist and circulate, they will pose a threat to all human rights, including the right to life and security of person. The reports on the impact of firearms presented by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to the Human Rights Council (HRC) over the years[1] clearly illustrate the role of firearms in contributing to human rights violations and abuses. Every firearm that is used to commit any form of violence came from somewhere, and in many cases, has been transferred across borders. Thus, the irresponsible role of the firearms industry and other industries that contribute to its...
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WILPF Statement to 2023 NPT Preparatory Committee on Gender and Intersectionality
The First Preparatory Committee for the Eleventh Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) took place in Vienna from 31 July–11 August 2023. WILPF delivered a statement to the Preparatory Committee on 2 August 2023. Thank you, Chairperson. I am speaking on behalf of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), the world’s oldest feminist peace organisation. A number of other civil society organisations have endorsed this statement. The full list is available on the statement posted online. In recent years, gender has gained increasing prominence in the working papers, statements, and policies of many NPT states parties. Much of this has focused on the lack of gender diversity in the NPT sphere—in particular, the continued dominance of men and exclusion of women from discussions and decision-making on nuclear policies. There is a stark disparity in the level (seniority or rank) and the number of men as compared to women in disarmament,...
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WILPF Statement to the Working Group on Further Strengthening the Review Process of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
The Working Group on Further Strengthening the Review Process of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) took place in Vienna from 24–28 July 2023. WILPF delivered a statement to the only session open to civil society participation on 25 July 2023. Thank you, Chairperson. I am speaking on behalf of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), the world’s oldest feminist peace organisation. WILPF has participated in the work of the NPT since the Treaty’s inception—and we have consistently advocated for nuclear disarmament since 1945. Our programme Reaching Critical Will has been a leader in the NPT space for more than twenty years, coordinating civil society participation, archiving primary documentation, and providing monitoring, reporting, analysis, and advocacy for states parties, academics, activists, and others. It is thus ironic and counterproductive, in our view, to convene a Working Group to improve the working methods of the NPT and then exclude civil...
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WILPF's statement to the Preparatory Meeting of the Ninth Conference of States Parties (CSP9) to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT)
The Working Group meetings and Second Informal Preparatory Meeting of the Ninth Conference of States Parties (CSP9) to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) took place in Geneva on 9–12 May 2023. WILPF delivered a statement under the discussion about the priority theme for the Korean Presidency on 'the role of industry in responsible international transfers of conventional arms’.
WILPF statement on the Working Paper by the President of CSP9 - "The role of industry in responsible international transfers on conventional arms"
12 May 2023
Delivered by Laura Varella
The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) welcomes the choice by the Korean Presidency of the role of industry in international transfers as the CSP9 President’s priority theme. Unfortunately, the President’s paper seems more concerned with “reputational risk” to weapons manufacturers than it does with the human suffering caused globally by their war profiteering.
In WILPF’s...
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WILPF's statement about the arms industry to the Preparatory Meeting of CSP9
The Working Group meetings and First Informal Preparatory Meeting of the Ninth Conference of States Parties (CSP9) to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) took place in Geneva on 14–17 February 2023. WILPF delivered a statement under the discussion about the priority theme for the Korean Presidency on ‘the role of industry in responsible international transfers of conventional arms’.
WILPF Statement on the priority theme of the Korean Presidency CSP9 PrepCom
17 February 2023
The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) welcomes the choice by the Korean Presidency of “the role of industry in responsible international transfers of conventional arms” as the CSP9 President’s priority theme. We believe that discussing the role of the industry is essential to address the impact by arms transfers, and to fulfil theATT’s purpose of reducing human suffering.
A recent valuable contribution to the topic, and one that should be considered by the ATT states parties in...
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WILPF's statement about the review of the ATT Programme of Work to the Preparatory Meeting of CSP9
The Working Group meetings and First Informal Preparatory Meeting of the Ninth Conference of States Parties (CSP9) to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) took place in Geneva on 14–17 February 2023. WILPF delivered a statement under the discussion about the review of the ATT Programme of Work.
WILPF STATEMENT ON THE REVIEW OF THE ATT PROGRAMME OF WORK CSP9 PREPCOM
17 February 2023
Delivered by Laura Varella
The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) welcomes the Management Committee’s (MC’s) preparation of the Background Paper reviewing the ATT Programme of Work (ATT/CSP9.MC/2023/MC/747/PM1.BackgrPaper), and takes note of other recent efforts which consider the impact of the Treaty’s processes and forums, such as the 2021 report by SIPRI, Taking Stock of the Arms Trade Treaty: Achievements, Challenges and Ways Forward .
WILPF believes that the current Programme of Work which consists of established working groups and intersessional preparatory meetings,...
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WILPF's statement to the 67th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW67)
WILPF's official statement to the 67th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW67)
14 December 2022
In all discussions regarding technology, gender matters. It matters because technology and innovation reflect the different visions of how societies are advancing gender equality and creating possible futures. There have been world-altering developments to help us communicate, collect data, document human rights violations, improve health and wellbeing, and enhance access to innovation. Women activists have used technology to amplify their safety and the safety of their communities.
Technology reflects, enhances, and embodies many of the same characteristics and qualities of the offline world. Therefore, technological developments often reflect the capitalist and destructive priorities of our world, which are frequently skewed towards brutal competition, violence, unsustainable production and consumption, and reinforcement of detrimental hierarchies and elite...
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WILPF statement on the final draft political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas
The fifth and final consultation on the political declaration on EWIPA took place in Geneva, on 17 June 2023. WILPF delivered the following statement. Thank you to the mission of Ireland for taking the initiative on this declaration, and for inviting civil society to participate in this process. WILPF commends you for all your efforts to hold inclusive consultations and to ensure transparency throughout. We also welcome the constructive contributions from states, international organisations, and civil society, including affected communities, which have tirelessly contributed these past years to build this declaration and strengthen the protection of civilians against the harm from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. For over a decade, we have been working together to address the unconscionable levels of death and harm caused by bombing towns, cities, and villages. The pattern of civilian harm deriving from the use of these weapons has been well documented by...
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WILPF closing statement to the fourth consultations on the draft political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas
The fourth consultations on a political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas (EWIPA) took place in Geneva, from 6–8 April. WILPF delivered the following statement on 8 April 2022. We thank Ireland for the efforts to drive this process forward and to ensure its transparency and inclusivity. We welcome by the constructive contributions from states, international organisations, and civil society, and we look forward to continuing this work to protect civilians through the process you’ve outlined today. As anyone can see from reading the news each day, these negotiations are not an academic exercise. Bombing is going on all around us. People are dying, living in fear, being separated from their families, struggling to survive conflict and its aftermath. This is the reality of our world. But it doesn’t have to be this way. These are political, military, and economic choices made by governments to use explosive weapons with wide area effects in populated...
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WILPF statement on Section 3 of the second revised draft political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas
The fourth consultations on a political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas (EWIPA) took place in Geneva, from 6–8 April. WILPF delivered the following statement on Section 3 of the declaration, on 7 April 2022. WILPF supports the comments on this revised text made by the International Network on Explosive Weapons (INEW), of which WILPF is a steering committee member. As an organisation, WILPF has a few points to raise or amplify: 3.3 is the core commitment of the declaration and must set the strongest possible standard. It should also be moved up in the declaration, as other commitments flow from it. The goal should be to end the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. This could be enacted through a commitment to not use EWIPA. While WILPF welcomes a commitment related to addressing reverberating effects of the use of EWIPA, 3.4 seems to assume that attacks in populated areas are legitimate and will continue. This paragraph could be better...
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WILPF statement on Section 4 of the second revised draft political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas
The fourth consultations on a political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas (EWIPA) took place in Geneva, from 6–8 April. WILPF delivered the following statement on Section 4 of the declaration, on 7 April 2022. WILPF supports the comments on this revised text made by the International Network on Explosive Weapons (INEW), of which WILPF is a member. As an organisation, WILPF has a few points to raise or amplify: 4.1 should urge international cooperation and assistance among all relevant stakeholders to exchange information and experiences in enhancing the protection of civilians, ending the use of EWIPA, and preventing armed conflict. In 4.2: The reference to “where feasible and appropriate” should be removed in relation to collecting and sharing data. Data collection on civilian harm should be disaggregated by sex and gender, age, and disability. Data collection should also include recording of destruction and damage to civilian objects or...
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WILPF statement on Section 1 of the second revised draft political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas
The fourth consultations on a political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas (EWIPA) took place in Geneva, from 6–8 April. WILPF delivered the following statement on Section 1 of the declaration, on 6 April 2022. Thank you to the mission of Ireland for hosting these consultations and inviting civil society to participate. WILPF welcomes the revised draft political declaration. It is imperative that the declaration promote a presumption against the use of EWIPA and seek to end this deadly and destructive practice. WILPF supports the detailed comments on this revised text made by the International Network on Explosive Weapons (INEW), of which WILPF is a member. We have a few points to raise or amplify and have submitted these in writing: Paragraphs 1.2 and 1.3 should use the language that the use of EWIPA does have these impacts, rather than can have these impacts. 1.2 should add a reference to the gendered and other differentiated impacts...
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WILPF statement on Section 2 of the second revised draft political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas
The fourth consultations on a political declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas (EWIPA) took place in Geneva, from 6–8 April. WILPF delivered the following statement on Section 2 of the declaration, on 6 April 2022. WILPF supports the comments on this revised text made by the International Network on Explosive Weapons (INEW), of which WILPF is a member. We also wanted to suggest the following: This section only recognises international human rights law (IHRL) briefly and focuses mostly on international humanitarian law (IHL). A new paragraph could be added that specifies that states continue to have obligations to respect, protect, and fulfil human rights in armed conflict, must exercise due diligence when using explosive weapons, and must assess their human rights impacts.
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War “over” Ukraine: Militarism is Killing Us All
Open Letter to the UN Security Council by WILPF Secretary General Madeleine Rees
28 January 2022
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It appears that the United States has decided to refer the deteriorating situation over Ukraine to the UN Security Council (UNSC) and this will be discussed on Monday, 31 January. We urge in the strongest possible terms that the debate is used to address the serious and underlying causes and not be abused by members of the UNSC to grandstand their militaristic rhetoric.
It is now obvious that the situation represents a massive and immediate threat to international peace and security. The Charter of the United Nations gives primary responsibility for the maintenance of that peace and security to the UNSC. Until now, the silence of the UN Secretary-General and from the UNSC has been incomprehensible. Ceding responsibility to resolve the situation to those who have proven themselves time and again to be absolutely irresponsible actors—governments that have invested billions into...
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International Women’s Day for Peace and Disarmament: Prioritise Lives, Not Weapons!
This statement is also available in Arabic, French, and Spanish. In the early 1980s, a group of pacifist feminists from across Europe united to protest the buildup of arms and nuclear weapons. Together, they established 24 May as International Women’s Day for Peace and Disarmament. On this day, the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) honours their legacy and that of women everywhere leading the struggle against militarism. As feminist peace activists from around the world, we continue to demand that governments take immediate action to end the daily threat and impact of weapons on people and communities everywhere. No one is immune from the effects of armed violence Every single day, more than 500 people around the world die from gun violence. An additional 2,000 are injured by gunshots. At least two million more are living with physical injuries from firearms. And an unquantifiable number are living with the long-term emotional trauma of armed...
75th Hiroshima and Nagasaki Commemoration
Remarks by Ray Acheson, Director of Reaching Critical Will of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF); International Steering Group Representative of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) to the Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons commemoration of the US atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, 6 August 2020.
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We’re meeting online today in the midst of a global pandemic to mark 75 years of another pandemic—that of nuclear weapons.
For seventy-five years, we have lived under the threat of radioactive blast and firestorm, the effects of which are immediately devastating and punishingly intergenerational.
For seventy-five years, nuclear weapon activities have contaminated land and water, disproportionately harming Indigenous communities.
For seventy-five years, corporations like Lockheed Martin and Boeing have reaped incredible profits from government contracts for bombs and bombers.
Last year, the nine...
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WILPF International Secretariat Statement on Systemic Racism and Police Brutality
4 June 2020 As WILPF is dedicated to building a peaceful, equal, just world, we cannot stay silent about the targeted killings of Black people, acts which are rooted in and emboldened by white supremacy and structural racism, especially as people are in the streets calling for those with a platform to speak up. Without justice, there can be no peace or freedom. The white supremacist patriarchy on which the US has been founded has for generations looted and murdered Black lives, Black communities, and Black futures, bolstered by leaders and institutions. The killings of #GeorgeFloyd, David McAtee, #BreonnaTaylor, #AhmaudArbery, and thousands of other Black people add to what Black people have been saying every single day: that our society has made little progress from its racist underpinnings, and Black people continue to be daily denied their basic human rights to living in freedom, safety, and with dignity. This system that dehumanises Black people is inextricable from the...
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WILPF Statement on gender and disarmament to the UN General Assembly First Committee on Disarmament and International Security
The following statement was drafted by the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom and endorsed by several NGOs (see below for list). It was delivered to the UN General Assembly First Committee on Disarmament and International Security on 18 October 2019. Chairperson, delegates, The civil society organisations that have signed onto this joint statement welcome the growing interest in the topic of “gender and disarmament”. We are pleased that last year’s First Committee saw a considerable increase in the number of resolutions advocating for women’s equal participation or recognising gendered impacts of weapons. We also appreciate that the Fifth Conference of States Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty earlier this year focused on the Treaty’s gender provisions and adopted action points to carry forward the implementation of those provisions. These developments are very welcome and should be continued and enhanced in as many disarmament forums as possible. However, a more...
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WILPF Statement to the Vienna Conference on Protecting Civilians in Urban Warfare
This statement was prepared for the Vienna Conference on Protecting Civilians in Urban Warfare hosted by the government of Austria from 1 to 2 October 2019. We meet here as civilians are dying around the world from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. This horrific and unacceptable practice has increased steadily. Yet while this issue is regularly highlighted as a top humanitarian concern by a growing chorus of voices, a strong and effective response to stop this humanitarian tragedy from repeatedly occurring has so far eluded us. The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), a steering committee member of the International Network on Explosive Weapons (INEW), thanks the government of Austria for convening this conference and giving this issue the focused and dedicated attention that it deserves. In the context of this panel discussion on direct civilian harm we want to illustrate that while the indiscriminate bombing of towns and cities may seem...