Guns and Violence against Women: Submission to the High Level Review of UNSCR 1325 - IANSA Women
This paper discusses the relationship between guns and violence against women, with specific attention to violence in the home. Women are at a higher risk of violence and death in the domestic sphere especially in cases where there is access or possession of firearms. This argument is supported by using case studies in South Africa, the UK and the US. In domestic violence cases, almost 70 per cent of fatalities are women and the perpetrator is usually a current or former partner. In these cases, about one in three of these femicides is committed with a firearm. Gender inequality, the tolerance and cultural acceptance of the use of violence against women, and common notions of masculinity that embrace firearms possession all combine to create a climate that places women at risk of IPV involving firearms. The objective of UNSCR 1325 is to improve women’s safety and to ensure that women are able to exercise their rights as citizens and fully participate in society. The proliferation and misuse of firearms affects the rights and participation of women in society, both in conflict and non-conflict settings. It is thus important to strengthen the reach and impact of UNSCR 1325 by including the protection of women not only in conflict situations but in others such as intimate-partner/domestic violence situations. It will also be important for national policies to adapt to the WPS agendas to allow full protection of women.
- Emphasise, in materials related to 1325 and in current and future related resolutions, the clear link between the proliferation of guns, and the outbreak and sustainability of armed violence, and women’s victimisation.
- Integrate strong regulation of firearms and the reduction of gun proliferation in National Action Plans on 1325.
- Emphasise the role that women currently play and can play in firearm policy-making, weapons collection and other disarmament and arms regulation initiatives.
1. Link national and local laws, policies and practices on domestic violence with those on firearms access and ownership. This means a prohibition on gun possession for anyone who has been involved in perpetrating domestic or gender-based violence. A determination on whether a current or potential gun user has a history of violence should be based not only on criminal records, but also on applications for civil restraining orders, record of complaints, information and insights from local police, and references from current and former spouses or partners. Likewise, any proceedings or procedures related to complaints of actual or threatened violence should include compulsory suspension of firearms licences or permits and removal of the guns, until a considered determination is made by the authorities on whether the weapons can be safely returned or whether the suspension should continue. Linking gun regulation and domestic violence in this way requires a well-resourced registration system for all firearms and all people and organisations authorised to possess firearms. 2. Establish National Commissions on Small Arms – as required by the UN Programme of Action – and include in its membership the government ministries responsible for women’s rights, public health and youth, as well as civil society organisations dealing with these topics. 3. Institute strong and comprehensive regional, national and local firearm regulation designed to reduce the proliferation of small arms and ammunition. This should include a licensing system so that only people who meet exacting standards may be authorised to buy, possess or use guns or ammunition, registration of all firearms, restrictive limits on the number and types of weapons and ammunition that individuals may possess or use, strict conditions for safe storage and use, and effective procedures for cancelling the authorisation and removing weapons from users who breach the rules or prove themselves unsuitable to possess deadly weapons. The regulatory scheme should require implementation of the International Tracing Instrument on small arms and the establishment and operation of adequately resourced units for tracing firearms and investigating arms trafficking.
