From 25 – 28 January in St Kitts and Nevis, and from 31 January – 2 February in Trinidad and Tobago, the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC), in collaboration with the Governments of both States, hosted 2 Serial Number Restoration Courses.
Obliterating serial numbers on firearms to mask their origin, is a common practice for criminals, facilitating both illegal use and illicit trafficking. The absence of serial numbers on firearms recovered at crime scenes in the Caribbean hinders the ability of States to trace all illicit firearms. The national Serial Number Restoration courses were developed to support States’ efforts to address the tracing of illicit firearms, through the provision of the technical training to forensic firearms scientists who are often required to restore the characters and numbers that have been obliterated.
In St Kitts and Nevis, 6 firearm examiners, including 2 women, from the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force participated in the training. Similarly, in Trinidad and Tobago, 1 firearm examiner from the Forensic Science Centre and 3 crime scene officers, 1 female, from the Police Service, participated in the course which consisted of hands-on use of Magnetic Particle Recovery and Chemical Etching Methods to recover obliterated serial numbers on firearms.
Serial number restoration has proven to be a key and necessary tool to trace firearms back to their last known legal owner and make use of the various regional and international tracing platforms. Throughout the region, restoration techniques have been used to support criminal investigations, successfully trace firearms and disband trafficking networks.
The Serial Number Restoration course contributes towards the implementation of Goal 3 of the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap, Bolster law enforcement capacity to combat illicit firearms and ammunition trafficking and their illicit possession and misuse, and ammunition, and ultimately reducing firearms-related crimes and armed violence in the Caribbean. The course was made possible thanks to support of the governments of Canada and United States of America.
UNLIREC, as the regional organ of the UN Office for Disarmament, seeks to advance the cause of practical disarmament in Latin America and the Caribbean as part of its commitment to support Member States in their implementation of international disarmament and non-proliferation instruments, in particular, the 2001 UN Programme of Action on Small Arms.
On 20 January 2022, the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC) hosted the regional webinar on ‘Building a Crime Gun Preventive Strategy in the Caribbean’. The objective of the webinar was to discuss the key components of implementing a successful crime gun preventive strategy in the Caribbean.
Six CARICOM states, Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, Guyana, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and The Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago were invited for the webinar. Over 45 officials (21 women) from ministries of Foreign Affairs, National Security/ Home Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Police Forces, Defence Forces, Forensic Laboratories, Intelligence Agencies and Customs of the 6 CARICOM States actively participated in the regional webinar.
The objective of this webinar was to discuss eight critical components of a successful crime gun preventive strategy. These included: stakeholder buy-in, regional approaches, ballistic imaging, overlaying technologies, knowing offenders and how they interact, using a single intelligence unit, public buy-in and, in the future, expanding a preventative strategy. UNLIREC highlighted that although no two strategies would be the same, and that innovation and ballistic imaging, are both fundamental to any effective crime gun preventive strategy. Furthermore, the importance of a collaborative effort between law enforcement agencies, customs agencies, forensic science laboratories and prosecuting offices was key.
This regional webinar, carried out in line with the 2001 UN Porgramme of Action on Small Arms and Sustainable Development Goal 16.4, contributes towards the implementation of Goal 3, ‘Bolster law enforcement capacity to combat illicit firearms and ammunition trafficking and their illicit possession and misuse’ of the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap, to regional efforts prevent illicit trafficking of firearms and ammunition, and ultimately reducing firearms-related crimes and armed violence in the Caribbean.
This webinar was generously sponsored by the Government of Canada. It forms part of a series of three regional webinars under the Canada-funded project ‘Support the Implementation of the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap’. UNLIREC, as the regional organ of the UN Office for Disarmament, seeks to advance the cause of practical disarmament in Latin America and the Caribbean as part of its commitment to support Member States in their implementation of international disarmament and non-proliferation instruments, in particular, the 2001 UN Programme of Action on Small Arms.
As part of the cycle of activities that UNLIREC has been carrying out between 2020 and 2021 to encourage conversation regionally and nationally about the phenomenon of firearms in schools, a webinar on ‘Firearms Prevention in Schools’ was held on the 16 December in collaboration with the Ministry of Education in El Salvador.
In this virtual event, UNLIREC shared the main findings of a study on Firearms in Schools in Latin America and the Caribbean: approaches, challenges and responses, presenting a regional overview of the main characteristics and developments of this phenomenon in recent years in the countries of the region, as well as sharing a series of initiatives and measures that have been implemented in some countries in the region to tackle and prevent the presence and use of firearms in schools.
To provide a national perspective on this phenomenon in El Salvador, the Ministry of Education gave a presentation in which many topics were highlighted, including the different types of risks to which schools are exposed, the current legal framework that prohibits carrying and bringing arms to schools, as well as the different measures and actions aimed at guaranteeing safe learning spaces which are free from violence.
As part of these measures, campaigns aimed at educational communities on issues of coexistence, continuous training for teachers, as well as inter-institutional coordination with the National Civil Police and other institutions to promote actions aimed at preventing the use of weapons in educational centres were highlighted.
This webinar was attended by around 175 participants, including staff from the Ministry of Education (such as educational and pedagogical advisors, coordinators, technicians, teachers, among others), as well as staff from the prevention areas of the National Civil Police.
This webinar was made possible thanks to the valuable financial contribution of the Government of Sweden.
On 15 December 2021, the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC), in collaboration with the Ministry on Women’s Condition and Women’s Rights in Haiti and with the support of the United Nations Development Programme in Haiti, held a national virtual seminar on “Measures to Prevent Armed Violence against Women”.
The main objectives of the webinar were to present the issue of armed violence and violence against women, the links between the two and their impacts on society; sensitize about the importance of linking the legal framework on firearms and ammunition control with the prevention of violence against women, as well as promoting an inter-institutional and collaborative approach to address and prevent gender-based armed violence against women.
In her opening remarks, the Minister on Women’s Condition and Women’s Rights emphasized the fact that the issue of armed violence against women was a priority for the Government as girls and women were particularly affected by violence perpetrated by criminal groups.
The first presentation, given by UNLIREC, made visible the differentiated impact of firearms on men and women, at the global, regional and national levels. It also emphasized the incidence of firearms on the different types of gender-based violence, including femicides. The presentation pointed to the presence of a firearm as a risk factor not only because it can be lethal but also because it is an element that can be used to threaten and coerce victims, therefore increasing their vulnerability.
UNLIREC’s second and last presentation for this activity focused on the findings of the Legal Study on the Making the link between norms on violence against women and small arms control and regulation norms: analysis of Haiti which analyzes Haiti’s norms in both thematic areas. During the seminar, references were made to good practices that were found in different countries’ legal framework in the region. A special emphasis was made on the importance of including and defining the crime of femicide in the national legal framework, as well as several types of measures to prevent and protect women from being victims of violence committed with firearms. The presentation also referred to the possibility of conducting a risk analysis from the very moment a person requests to possess a firearm as a prevention measure.
The virtual event was open to government officials, civil society organizations, including women and youth organizations, academia and international and regional cooperation agencies and programs. 59 people, including a large majority of 40 women, attended the event. The audience included government officials and mostly civil society organizations and agencies and programs of the United Nations System in Haiti.
This initiative is part of a series of activities that UNLIREC carried out to strengthen national capacities to develop and implement gender-sensitive approaches to issues related to the reduction of armed violence. This initiative was possible thanks to the financial support of the Government of Canada.
10 Dec 2021 – Within the framework of UNLIREC’s project on women, youth and disarmament, funded by the Kingdom of Sweden, the Regional Centre hosted a roundtable discussion with youth in their role as forces of change. Topics discussed included disarmament, arms control and non-proliferation, as well as specific means of addressing armed violence in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The virtual Roundtable Discussion provided a space for exchange and dialogue with young people who lead and implement initiatives to combat disarmament in different parts of the region: El Salvador, Peru, Colombia, Brazil, Honduras and Argentina.
The exchange of experiences on the actions that these young leaders put into practice proved to be extremely enriching. Activities ranged from training in vulnerable communities to the promotion of peace-building programs driven by young people at the local level, and from collaboration with universities to conduct research related to security to the development of artistic strategies with communities for peaceful coexistence.
This discussion provided an opportunity to present and learn about their main achievements, difficulties and challenges. Through the exchange of experiences, both panelists and participants had the opportunity to identify opportunities, visualize partnerships and make recommendations.
This event was intended to contribute to the implementation of General Assembly Resolution 74/64 on youth, disarmament and non-proliferation, as well as Security Council Resolution 22/50 on youth, peace and security, which promotes youth participation and inclusive representation.
The adoption of General Assembly resolution 74/64 on youth, disarmament and non-proliferation reaffirms the importance and positive contribution of youth in promoting and achieving sustainable peace and security in the field of disarmament and non-proliferation. Young people play a key role in raising awareness and developing new approaches to making a difference in reducing gun violence.
On the 9 November, UNLIREC and the National Agency for Controlled Materials (ANMaC) of Argentina held a national dialogue on the prevention of firearms prevention in schools. The main objectives of this virtual event were to share the principal findings of the regional study conducted by UNLIREC on firearms in schools, as well as to promote the intersectorall dialogue regarding impacts, challenges and routes for action to prevent the presence and use of arms in schools.
As part of the agenda of this meeting, UNLIREC shared the main findings from the study Firearms in Schools in Latin America and the Caribbean: approaches, challenges and answers. In this vein, UNLIREC presented the regional overview of the main characteristics of this phenomenon in recent years in the countries of the region, as well as sharing a series of initiatives and measures that have been implemented in some countries in the region to address and prevent the presence and use of firearms in schools.
ANMaC held a presentation in which they highlighted the specific policies developed by the Agency in this area in recent years, highlighting the different actions that were implemented to raise awareness in educational communities about the risks and impacts of the proliferation and misuse of firearms. Of these activities, the workshops “Beliefs that kill” and “Disarming Masculinities” aimed at students from secondary schools from different provinces in Argentina were highlighted.
This national perspective was complemented by a presentation led by the Alfredo Marcenac Civil Association from the Argentinian Network for Disarmament, which highlighted some underlying cultural elements in societies that influence the phenomenon in question, such as the symbolic value assigned to weapons as mechanisms for conflict resolution. During this intervention the experience developed in the framework of the Educational Programme for Disarmament Awareness and Peacebuilding aimed at educational institutions at different levels in the Province of Buenos Aires was also shared.
This virtual meeting was possible thanks to the generous financial contribution from the Government of Switzerland.
