Disarmament and Peace
The Disarmament and Peace Programme promotes approaches that reduce armed violence, increase human security, and lay the foundations for sustainable peace. It pursues this through engagement with key diplomatic, civil society and other actors in Geneva and beyond.
Reducing the threat of weapons
Weapons threats to global and human security take many forms. QUNO has long had a focus on disarmament. We are well placed to do this work, as Geneva is home to many multilateral mechanisms on arms control and disarmament. We played a key role in the achievement of the Mine Ban Convention and its implementation, and supported the achievement of the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Small arms kill and injure hundreds of thousands of people annually and undermine human development. We devote much of our disarmament focus to small arms questions, and work closely with others in seeking the implementation of the UN Programme of Action on Small Arms.
Broken chair: Memorial to landmine victims in Geneva
We pioneered attention to ‘demand’ factors - why people and groups seek arms - that drive the proliferation of small arms. Out of this has come our current engagement in the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development. QUNO also closely follows developments in nuclear disarmament, including the recent return to work by the Conference on Disarmament.
Change through partnership
In our disarmament and peace work, we use conference and dialogue processes to build understanding and strategies for action. We have built innovative partnerships in generating action on key issues and we seek out partnerships between governments, international organizations, and civil society. (See www.geneva-forum.org). We aim to bring the voices of community and national non-governmental actors to bear on international policy discussions. We help to develop global agendas and to implement agreed commitments.
Building peace
With the creation of the UN Peacebuilding Commission, based in New York, in 2005, we have an exciting new arena for Quaker peace work. QUNO is working to improve the engagement of the Geneva-based community in this new, integrated approach to peacebuilding, with particular regard to the contributions of civil society. To this end, we – with three partner organisations – set up a new body, the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform in 2008. Over the last year the Platform has worked to marshal the experience and expertise of Geneva-based organisations, and build links to the New York institutions.
“If we act boldly—and if we act together—we can make people everywhere more secure, more prosperous and better able to enjoy their fundamental human rights.”
Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in “In Larger Freedom” (2005)
Armed violence and development
Building on QUNO’s pioneering work on small arms demand, we have engaged since 2007 in a new area of work, on the links between armed violence and development. True and sustained development relies on an environment of human security and reduced violence. At the same time, improved and equitable socio-economic development can work to reduce some of the root causes of armed violence, both in conflict and crime.
Walking the path to sustainable peace.
In 2006, this was recognised in an exciting diplomatic initiative, the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development. This is a collaborative process involving states, civil society and the UN, and its participants see it as a way to create concrete, practical programmes on the ground, which is ultimately the only way to make a real difference to people’s lives and livelihoods. QUNO plays an important role as the liaison between civil society organisations and the diplomatic core group that drives the initiative. We have also been working with a range of civil society groups from around the world, including international and local organisations, to create a more coherent, distinctively ‘civil society’ approach to this work. This means moving beyond diplomatic talk to put real programmes into action, and work with states to help them see and take advantage of the opportunities to do this. We invite you to join us in this – please see the right hand column for sources of further information.
"The international community has acknowledged that armed violence and conflict impede realisation of the Millennium Development Goals, and that conflict prevention and resolution, violence reduction, human rights, good governance and peace-building are key steps towards reducing poverty, promoting economic growth and improving people’s lives.”
Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development.
Get involved
Visit www.quno.org, www.geneva-forum.org, www.genevadeclaration.org
Subscribe to The Geneva Reporter, our regular newsletter, available electronically or in hard copy.
Further information on Armed Violence and Development is available through:
The Geneva Declaration Newsletter, edited by QUNO on behalf of the Geneva Declaration Secretariat.
The Good Practices Magazine, published by Comunidad Segura with support from QUNO, which focuses particularly on civil society work.
Both available at: www.genevadeclaration.org
Support this work with a donation.
Contact
David Atwood
QUNO Geneva, 13 Avenue du Mervelet, 1209 Geneva, SWITZERLAND
+ 41 22 748 48 02
Quaker Peace & Social Witness works with, and on behalf of, the Religious Society of Friends in Britain to translate our faith into action. As Quakers we are impelled by our faith to make our lives an active witness for peace and justice. Our historic testimonies to equality, justice, peace, simplicity and truth challenge us to alleviate suffering and seek positive social change.
The Quaker UN Offices, located in Geneva and New York, represent Quakers through Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC), which has General Consultative Status as an NGO with the United Nations.
June 2009
