Oct 28, 2020 | Uncategorized
Joint Statement by UNLIREC and CARICOM IMPACS during the Ninth CBSI High-level Dialogue 28 October 2020
Delivered by Ms. Melanie Regimbal, Director, UNLIREC
CBSI High level Dialogue 2020
I deliver this statement on behalf of the CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS) and the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC).
The proliferation of Illicit firearms and ammunitions continues to contribute to violence in CARICOM. Illicit firearms are fuelling armed violence, organised crime, gang crimes and gender-based violence, while thwarting sustainable development efforts.
One year after the CARICOM Conference of Heads of Government adopted the ‘Caribbean Priority Actions on Addressing Illicit Trafficking of Firearms (Priority Actions)’ in February 2019, which was developed within the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI) Framework, Caribbean States with the assistance of UNLIREC and CARICOM IMPACS have consolidated these political commitments of the Priority Actions and developed ‘The Roadmap for Implementing The Caribbean Priority Actions on the Illicit Proliferation of Firearms and Ammunition across the Caribbean in a Sustainable Manner by 2030 (Caribbean Firearms Roadmap)’ to guide the implementation of the Caribbean Priority Actions. We would like to thank the Governments of Germany and the United States of America for their assistance in the development of the Roadmap. We also appreciate their continued support towards the furtherance of the CBSI Firearms Technical Working Group (TWG) ‘Priority Actions’ and the development of countries ‘National Action Plans (NAPs)’. This is truly an example of cross border cooperation and collaboration.
Since the official communication for approval of the Roadmap, via round robin, was sent to Caribbean States in June 2020, I am pleased to announce that as of yesterday, CARICOM IMPACS advise that we have eight (8) CARICOM States which have approved the Roadmap. We respectfully urge other States to approve the Roadmap and its activities thereby ensuring that the Caribbean Priority Actions which were endorsed by the CARICOM Heads of Government in February 2019 are implemented. We note that national ownership is key to the success of the Roadmap.
CARICOM IMPACS and UNLIREC attach great importance to the implementation of the Roadmap, and recognise the importance of working together, both bilaterally and through multilateral efforts to create a coordinated and consistent regional approach aimed at maximising benefits for all Member States based on key principles and commitments, including respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, transparency and host nation consent.
In order to successfully implement the Roadmap, we will actively work in concert with the other international partners, including but not limited to the Governments of Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and the European Union; various international organisations, such as the International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL), Organisation of American States (OAS), UN Development Programme (UNDP), UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and the World Customs Organisation (WCO), as well as civil society organisations (CSOs), academia and research institutions with the aim of bolstering national and regional efforts to achieve a safer Caribbean.
The implementation of the Roadmap will contribute to the attainment of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (Agenda 2030), and most specifically to the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 16.4, which aims to significantly reduce illicit financial and arms flow by 2030.
We welcome the contribution and support of international organizations, donors, civil society and research institutions to assist national authorities to implement the Caribbean Priority Actions through the operational Roadmap presented here.
Thank You
Oct 26, 2020 | Uncategorized
From 26-30 October 2020, the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC), in collaboration with the Chilean National Customs Service, carried out its second virtual edition of Interdicting Small Arms, Ammunition, Parts and Components (ISAAPC) Course in the region. Due to the COVID pandemic, the Centre restructured and adapted its training to a virtual format to facilitate continued training. As part of this process, the course content was updated and different interactive resources were included to facilitate the understanding and interaction through UNLIREC’s new e-learning platform.
The aim of this five-day course is to support Latin American and Caribbean States efforts to combat and prevent the diversion and illicit trafficking of firearms, ammunition, parts, components and explosive through postal shipments, parcels and baggage by providing specialized x-ray identification training.
The course is aimed at x-ray screening operators and support personnel with responsibilities in control and inspection at points of entry, exit and transit as well as other security check points. Forty (40) officials from the Directorate of Customs of Chile, Directorate General of Civil Aviation and Chilean Carabineros attended the course.
Through a theoretical and practical methodology, participants received specialized training on technical specifications of small arms, their parts, components, ammunition and explosives as well as on elements related to the interpretation of X-ray images that may suggest the presence of a threat. In addition, participants had access to a training platform developed by the Center for Adaptive Security Research and Applications (CASRA), which contains a repository of images developed by UNLIREC.
This ISAAPC Course has contributed to improving detection capacities and interdiction practices in support of the prevention and combat of illicit trafficking of small arms, ammunition, parts and components in the region. Participants expressed great interest in this training, which strengthens their capacities to efficiently identify firearms and ammunition, taking in consideration that in recent years are being sent illegally firearms and ammunitions via air cargo and postal shipments.
This training course forms part of the by the ATT Voluntary Trust Fund (VTF), of which Chile is a beneficiary and UNLIREC, at the request of the Paraguayan authorities, is an implementing partner.
Oct 26, 2020 | Uncategorized
On 26 October 2020, the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC) and the Caribbean Community’s Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (CARICOM IMPACS), in collaboration with the Government of Trinidad and Tobago, and the Government of Germany, hosted a virtual Executive Seminar for the Advancement of Trinidad and Tobago’s National Action Plan for the implementation of the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap.
Trinidad and Tobago adopted the ‘Roadmap for Implementing The Caribbean Priority Actions on the Illicit Proliferation of Firearms and Ammunition across the Caribbean in a Sustainable Manner by 2030’ (Caribbean Firearms Roadmap) in July 2020. The Roadmap consolidates and builds upon the 2019 actions adopted by Caribbean Heads of Governments on addressing the illicit trafficking of firearms in the region.
Following adoption, Trinidad and Tobago became the first State to commence concrete actions contemplated in the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap by taking steps to create its National Action Plan (NAP). Forty representatives of the Ministry of National Security, Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs, Defence Force, Police Service, Forensic Science Centre, Customs and Excise Division, Judiciary, Public Prosecutions Department and Gender and Child Affairs Division, along with members of the German Federal Foreign Ministry, UNLIREC and CARICOM IMPACS participated in the NAP Executive Seminar. Participants discussed the Roadmap and steps needed to map out Trinidad and Tobago’s priorities, plans and timelines for implementing the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap. The successful implementation of the Roadmap will require both the concerted efforts of national authorities, as well as the timely, targeted and coordinated support of regional and international partners and donors.
The Roadmap serves as a base document for Trinidad and Tobago in the elaboration of its National Action Plan (NAP). It includes four main goals: (1) reinforce regulatory frameworks governing firearms and ammunition; (2) reduce the illicit flow of firearms and ammunition into, within and beyond the region; (3) bolster law enforcement capacity to combat illicit firearms and ammunition trafficking and their illicit possession and misuse; and (4) systematically decrease the risk of diversion of firearms and ammunition from government- and non-government-owned arsenals. Each goal incorporates pre-defined actions and targets, recommended performance indicators, all in alignment with a timeline, which runs from 2020 to 2030, to coincide with the culmination of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
UNLIREC and CARICOM IMPACS, as the main implementing partners, will lend technical assistance in the elaboration of the NAPs and in their successive implementation. The governments of Canada, Germany, United States of America and the United Kingdom have pledged support to 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.
Oct 23, 2020 | Uncategorized
On 23 October, the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC), in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Education of Peru, conducted a webinar on “Initiatives to address and prevent the presence and use of firearms in schools”.
This event was held over two days, with close to 300 participants. The vast majority were specialists in school coexistence from the Local Education Management Unit (UGEL) from different regions and departments in Peru, school psychologists, officials and technical staff from the Ministry of Education, as well as various representatives from the National Superintendence of Control of Security Services, Weapons, Ammunition and Explosives for Civilian Use (SUCAMEC), the Ministry of Interior and the National Police.
As part of the online event, UNLIREC shared the most relevant findings from its recent study on ‘Firearms in Latin American and Caribbean Schools: Approaches, Challenges and Responses’. This regional study, in addition to analyzing the main manifestations of this phenomenon, also compiled a series of responses and measures that are being implemented in some countries of the region to address this phenomenon. Some examples include regulatory frameworks prohibiting the presence and use of firearms in schools, safe storage measures, registration and information systems, action guides and protocols, awareness-raising and education campaigns, among others. UNLIREC also shared some policy recommendations to ensure a comprehensive approach to the presence and use of firearms in schools. As part of the recommendations included in the study, UNLIREC indicated that it is essential to consider the role of young people as agents of change and involve them, their families and communities, in designing and implementing armed violence prevention strategies.
With respect to Peru, in particular, participants indicated that although few cases have been recorded in recent years, the educational community and wider society are unaware of the scale and severity of this phenomenon. In this sense, the importance of having diagnostics and information systems to report and record cases of this nature was highlighted. Regarding these types of measures, it is important to point out that Peru has a Specialized System for Attending to Cases of School Violence (SiSeVe), which allows anyone who has been a victim or witness of school violence to make a complaint on the platform. It also considers incidents with firearms. This tool is fundamental for designing a comprehensive response to address and prevent episodes with firearms in schools.
In addition, participants indicated that it is important to move forward with the development of orientation guides and protocols to address potential episodes of the presence and use of firearms in schools. The need to strengthen coordinated and sectoral work among different institutions (education, security, childhood, arms control, among others) to prevent the presence and use of firearms in Peruvian schools was also stressed.
This space for dialogue was made possible thanks to the valuable financial contribution of the Government of Sweden.
Oct 19, 2020 | Uncategorized
From 19-21 October, UNLIREC conducted two training sessions for 25 officials and sub-officials from the Logistics Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of El Salvador. The first session, held on 19 October, consisted of a Seminar on the classification of firearms and ammunition, which provided a general introduction to concepts, types of firearms and ammunition, their characteristics, technical specifications, among other aspects.
Subsequently, on 20 and 21 October, UNLIREC conducted a virtual technical workshop on physical security and effective management of firearms and ammunition applicable to judicial deposits. Worldwide, it is widely recognized that state deposits, including deposits or storage facilities where seized firearms or ammunition are safeguarded and serve as evidence in judicial processes, may be prone to loss, theft and robbery. Consequently, they compromise the integrity of the evidence, not only affecting the investigation and criminal justice processes, but also the imminent risk that firearms and ammunition will be diverted to criminal groups with the implications this has in terms of citizen security for societies.
In this context, and with the objective of strengthening technical capabilities of personnel in charge of custody and control of firearms and ammunition that are safeguarded in the country’s judicial deposits, these sessions provided participants with training in risk assessment and management, guidelines on physical security, as well as management and storage of firearms and ammunition applicable to judicial deposits. All of this is based on good practices and international standards such as the Modular Small Arms Control Implementation Compendium (MOSAIC) and the International Ammunition Technical Guidelines (IATGs). These sessions were complemented by a practical exercise where participants applied the knowledge developed during this workshop, specifically on risk assessment and management.
Both activities were developed as part of the technical assistance that UNLIREC provides the Government of El Salvador to strengthen and develop national capacities to effectively and transparently manage small arms and ammunition, in line with international instruments and commitments regarding the subject. These events were financed by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany and the UN Trust Facility Supporting Cooperation on Arms Regulation (UNSCAR), respectively.
Oct 15, 2020 | Uncategorized
On 15 October 2020, the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC), in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of El Salvador, conducted a seminar on measures for preventing armed violence against women.
Approximately 40 officials from the ministries of Foreign Affairs, Justice and Security, and Defense (Arms Registry Department), the National Civil Police (Gender Unit) and the Salvadoran Institute for the Development of Women (ISDEMU) participated in the one-day virtual event.
UNLIREC launched the seminar with an overview and analysis of statistics on armed violence and violence against women (VAW) in El Salvador and the wider Latin American and Caribbean region, emphasizing feminicides and the impact influence of firearms on the various types of VAW (physical, sexual and psychological). Subsequently, UNLIREC presented the findings from its legal study on the link between rules on gender-based violence and small arms control and regulatory standards.
ISDEMU participated in discussions in order to promote a comprehensive and interinstitutional approach to the problem by exploring the various policies implemented in El Salvador vis-à-vis the prevention of VAW.
Finally, there was a walkthrough of the various strategies selected by the countries of the region to prevent and address VAW during social isolation and confinement measures throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and recommendations on how to integrate firearms control into these initiatives, and vice versa; that is, recommendations to integrate gender perspectives and prevention of VAW into firearms control measures. The need to evaluate the continued implementation of some measures and recommendations beyond the pandemic was also addressed.
A common theme of the event was the importance of coordination and cooperation among institutions with responsibilities in the prevention of VAW and care for victims, and the control and regulation of firearms and ammunition.
This activity forms part of UNLIREC’s ‘Women, Disarmament, Non-proliferation and Arms Control Programme’, supported by the Government of Canada and the European Union.
