GENEVA (7 May 2021) – The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, today welcomed the call by a broad number of civil society organizations to impose an arms...

Statement by Michelle Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights 16 November 2020 Excellencies, Thank you for inviting me to this virtual meeting of States Parties to the Mine Ban Convention...

In this report, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights clarifies the scope of goods to be considered when discussing diversion of arms and unregulated or illicit arms transfers, and highlights how these practices have a gendered impact on the human rights of women and girls.

The publication of the United Nations Human Rights Guidance on the Use of Less Lethal Weapons in Law Enforcement provides concise and user-friendly guidelines, outlining international norms and...

GENEVA (27 April 2020) – OECD Member States should consider establishing a mechanism to prevent conflict of interest of their National Contact Points (NPC’s) corporate review process to strengthen the...

This report includes an overview of challenges related to the diversion of small arms and light weapons at the national, regional and international levels. It provides an overview of good practices, lessons learned and recommendations on preventing and combating the diversion and illicit international transfer of small arms and light weapons to unauthorized recipients.

Arabic GENEVA/TRIPOLI (27 January 2020) –In a new report on the July 2019 airstrikes in Libya that killed at least 53 migrants and refugees at the Tajoura detention centre – one of the deadliest...

This report includes an assessment of national implementation trends and recommendations on how States could further strengthen the small-arms process in order to enhance the implementation of the Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects and the International Instrument to Enable States to Identify and Trace, in a Timely and Reliable Manner, Illicit Small Arms and Light Weapons.

Increased civilian access to firearms, including lawfully acquired weapons, leads to increased levels of violence and insecurity, which have a negative impact on civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. In the report, the High Commissioner also discusses the particular impact that civilian access to firearms has on the human rights of women, children, adolescents and members of ethnic minorities.

In the Secretary-General’s new agenda for disarmament, set out in the document entitled “Securing Our Common Future: an Agenda for Disarmament”, he underscored the priority of “disarmament that saves lives”. The present report highlights the major achievements in that regard of the Third United Nations Conference to Review Progress. The report also contains a summary of the activities undertaken during the reporting period by the following mechanisms: Coordinating Action on Small Arms; Group of Interested States for Practical Disarmament Measures; and United Nations Trust Facility Supporting Cooperation on Arms Regulation.