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Do Armed Drones Respect Human Rights?

1 April 2014

WILPF has been keeping you updated during this session of the Human Rights Council (HRC) on the initiative to acknowledge the need for drones to be used in respect of Human Rights. Last Friday the resolution was finally passed, not without any controversy.

Who Voted Yes and Who Voted No
Image showing which member states voted yes, no or abstained for the resolution on drones
Result of Vote by Member States on the Resolution

Disagreement over this initiative managed to divide the EU, of which the UK and France were openly against, Germany and the Czech Republic abstained, and Ireland supported it. Also, the USA did not take part in any of the informal negotiations nor did it try to reach an agreement, but simply voted against it on Friday. You can have a look at the results of the vote here.

The argument used by most opposing member states was that the HRC is not the appropriate forum for such a statement. Have a look at our previous blog post to see how we refute that argument.

What the Resolution is About

The text of the resolution is quite strong. Some of the main elements are that it calls for the principles of precaution, distinction and proportionality and for transparency in the use of drones. It also calls for prompt, independent and impartial investigations whenever there are indications of a human rights violation.

Regretfully, some of the very positive suggestions did not make their way to the text, such as the suggestion from Peru to include the right to reparation and redress of victims and their families when their rights are violated by armed drones. Also, WILPF insisted that not only direct violations of human rights must be acknowledged; drones also indirectly violate human rights such as the right to freedom of movement or the right to development. In this sense it is essential to remember that the constant danger of drone attacks and indeed their attacks hinder development.

Next Steps

We will keep discussing all of these issues in September! The resolution decides to organise an Interactive Panel Discussion of experts and WILPF will indeed engage and keep you updated! What do you think should not be left out from that discussion? Let us know by commenting below and let’s start getting ready for it.

Sign up to the Update from the HRC Newsletter here!

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Melissa Torres

VICE-PRESIDENT

Prior to being elected Vice-President, Melissa Torres was the WILPF US International Board Member from 2015 to 2018. Melissa joined WILPF in 2011 when she was selected as a Delegate to the Commission on the Status of Women as part of the WILPF US’ Practicum in Advocacy Programme at the United Nations, which she later led. She holds a PhD in Social Work and is a professor and Global Health Scholar at Baylor College of Medicine and research lead at BCM Anti-Human Trafficking Program. Of Mexican descent and a native of the US/Mexico border, Melissa is mostly concerned with the protection of displaced Latinxs in the Americas. Her work includes training, research, and service provision with the American Red Cross, the National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Centre, and refugee resettlement programs in the U.S. Some of her goals as Vice-President are to highlight intersectionality and increase diversity by fostering inclusive spaces for mentorship and leadership. She also contributes to WILPF’s emerging work on the topic of displacement and migration.

Jamila Afghani

VICE-PRESIDENT

Jamila Afghani is the President of WILPF Afghanistan which she started in 2015. She is also an active member and founder of several organisations including the Noor Educational and Capacity Development Organisation (NECDO). Elected in 2018 as South Asia Regional Representative to WILPF’s International Board, WILPF benefits from Jamila’s work experience in education, migration, gender, including gender-based violence and democratic governance in post-conflict and transitional countries.

Sylvie Jacqueline Ndongmo

PRESIDENT

Sylvie Jacqueline NDONGMO is a human rights and peace leader with over 27 years experience including ten within WILPF. She has a multi-disciplinary background with a track record of multiple socio-economic development projects implemented to improve policies, practices and peace-oriented actions. Sylvie is the founder of WILPF Cameroon and was the Section’s president until 2022. She co-coordinated the African Working Group before her election as Africa Representative to WILPF’s International Board in 2018. A teacher by profession and an African Union Trainer in peace support operations, Sylvie has extensive experience advocating for the political and social rights of women in Africa and worldwide.

WILPF Afghanistan

In response to the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban and its targeted attacks on civil society members, WILPF Afghanistan issued several statements calling on the international community to stand in solidarity with Afghan people and ensure that their rights be upheld, including access to aid. The Section also published 100 Untold Stories of War and Peace, a compilation of true stories that highlight the effects of war and militarisation on the region. 

IPB Congress Barcelona

WILPF Germany (+Young WILPF network), WILPF Spain and MENA Regional Representative

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Demilitarisation

WILPF uses feminist analysis to argue that militarisation is a counter-productive and ill-conceived response to establishing security in the world. The more society becomes militarised, the more violence and injustice are likely to grow locally and worldwide.

Sixteen states are believed to have supplied weapons to Afghanistan from 2001 to 2020 with the US supplying 74 % of weapons, followed by Russia. Much of this equipment was left behind by the US military and is being used to inflate Taliban’s arsenal. WILPF is calling for better oversight on arms movement, for compensating affected Afghan people and for an end to all militarised systems.

Militarised masculinity

Mobilising men and boys around feminist peace has been one way of deconstructing and redefining masculinities. WILPF shares a feminist analysis on the links between militarism, masculinities, peace and security. We explore opportunities for strengthening activists’ action to build equal partnerships among women and men for gender equality.

WILPF has been working on challenging the prevailing notion of masculinity based on men’s physical and social superiority to, and dominance of, women in Afghanistan. It recognizes that these notions are not representative of all Afghan men, contrary to the publicly prevailing notion.

Feminist peace​

In WILPF’s view, any process towards establishing peace that has not been partly designed by women remains deficient. Beyond bringing perspectives that encapsulate the views of half of the society and unlike the men only designed processes, women’s true and meaningful participation allows the situation to improve.

In Afghanistan, WILPF has been demanding that women occupy the front seats at the negotiating tables. The experience of the past 20 has shown that women’s presence produces more sustainable solutions when they are empowered and enabled to play a role.

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