Women from Burundi, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, South Africa, Sweden and Uganda participated in a 3 day intensive and participatory training institute on women and SALW control.

Sessions included: the gender dimensions of SALW possession and use; international and regional instruments; the UN small arms process; the Arms Trade Treaty; national gun laws; national commissions on small arms; and Security Sector Reform.

Organised by the Swedish Fellowship for Reconciliation (SweFOR) and the IANSA Women's Network (WN), the training was funded by the Folke Bernadotte Academy, a Swedish government agency dedicated to improving the quality and effectiveness of international conflict and crisis management. It aimed to build capacity and increase women’s participation and impact in the global movement against gun violence, and increase the visibility of the small arms issue in the global movement for women’s rights. It also increased the capacity of women to become trainers and educators in their own countries and regions, and to share experiences and best practice on work in gender and small arms.

The training was 'women only' to provide a safe learning environment which celebrated achievement, stimulated community building and prepared participants to pass their knowledge to other women. Each participant will now become a trainer on small arms and gender in her own country. Grace Tukaheebwa from CECORE in Uganda is immediately putting her knowledge to use, teaching a module on gender and small arms to 25 young women in Nairobi (Kenya).

The curriculum and materials draw on IANSA’s expertise in the area of SALW, and the focus of the WN on gender perspectives, and SweFOR’s expertise supporting local NGO capacity building, and work with local parliamentarians and authorities. The training materials consist of a Trainer and Participant Guide and are in a modular format so that they can be used in ‘standalone’ sessions as well as part of the training series.

Both IANSA and SweFOR are dedicated to the enhancement of women’s human rights, and emphasise capacity-building and networking as strategic tools for effective mobilisation and for promoting women’s involvement in the field of SALW control. Together we hope to organise trainings in other languages and regions.

For more information or if you are interested in organising a women only training contact women@iansa.org

Participants were: Marren Akatsa-Bukachi, EASSI, Uganda; Beatrice N Joe, LUEHW, Liberia; Céline Siro, FECCLAHA, Burundi/Kenya; Laura Pollecutt, South Africa; Rosa Kihara, DICAC, Ethiopia; Grace Tukaheebwa, CECORE, Uganda; Caroline Mvalo Chisi, CECOWDA, Malawi; and Gunilla Wahlen, Parliamentarian, Sweden.

Trainers were: Helena Koumi, SweFOR, Sweden; Sarah Masters, IANSA Secretariat; Justine Kwachu, WAA Cameroon, Cameroon; and Judy Waruhiu, Kenya.

Knowledge becomes action: IANSA women and the ATT

Immediately after the women only Training Institute, seven participants participated in a meeting ‘Working towards 2012 United Nations Conference on an Arms Trade Treaty (ATT)’ hosted by the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa (UNREC), IANSA, and Oxfam International in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 5-7 December.

Judy Waruhiu gave a presentation on ‘Women, peace and security: The role of an ATT’ and she, and other IANSA women, shared best practices in lobbying and campaigning. Together they outlined action plans from now until 2012 when the UN negotiating conference for the ATT is scheduled.

Participants also discussed the substantive elements that should be included in the ATT including: states obligations under the UN Charter, international human rights law, and international humanitarian law, the prevention of gender based violence, particularly sexual violence that can constitute a crime against humanity and a war crime, and the need to ensure that the arms trade does not undermine socio-economic development or involve corruption.

This meeting also prepared civil society input to the Southern, Great Lakes and Horn of Africa Governmental meeting on the ATT on 10-11 December organised by the UN Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR) and attended by government officials.

As a representative of civil society, Judy Waruhiu spoke at the opening session and noted how civil society continues to be at the forefront in highlighting violations of international human rights law, and has actively contributed to the formulation of regional agreements and instruments such as the Bamako Declaration, ECOWAS Convention, and Nairobi and SADC (South African Development Community) Declarations.

She explained that no system exists to observe and control the traffic of guns or activities of arms brokers, and how the lack of international laws governing the arms trade is a central factor to the easy flow to, and availability of small arms in, Africa. Judy concluded that African countries should demand an ATT that makes arms suppliers take responsibility for arms transfers, and ensure that international human rights law will not be violated with these weapons.