Paragraph 143(d) – Beijing Platform for Action. Chapter IV: Strategic Objectives and Actions
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): The Good Men Project
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2019/08/14
Strategic objective E.2.
Reduce excessive military expenditures and control the availability of armaments
Actions to be taken
143. By Governments:
d. While acknowledging legitimate national defence needs, recognize and address the dangers to society of armed conflict and the negative effect of excessive military expenditures, trade in arms, especially those arms that are particularly injurious or have indiscriminate effects, and excessive investment for arms production and acquisition; similarly, recognize the need to combat illicit arms trafficking, violence, crime, the production and use of and trafficking in illicit drugs, and trafficking in women and children;
Beijing Declaration (1995)
Paragraph 143 deals with military expenditures and the actions of government entities, of governments and associated institutions. The call for the reduction in the military expenditures of the world can be problematic because governments have placed a specific portion or an apportionment of the military expenditure on the “things we want” list.
This can raise questions about “legitimate national defense needs” within the context of military expenditures, because many of the Member States may find their current expenditures fine, as is, so a problem for the possible reduction in the military expenditures; it can depend on point of view. Nonetheless, putting this concern to the side for the moment, there is a call, circa 1995 and probably earlier, for a recognition and a need to address the dangers with armed conflict and then the negative effects of excess military expenditure.
It makes a logical sense. If wars, progress or development become difficult. If lots of arms, and if war, then this prevents a proper development of the flourishing of communities and nations with spillover effects that can damage neighbouring societies who may, by necessity, become embroiled in national and even regional wars. All these create conditions for the creation of refugee women and girls, and the various forms of extreme violence against women that be seen in war contexts.
Those who deal or war or trade in armaments become complicit in negative effects, including the downstream effects of violence against women. These become “particularly injurious or… indiscriminate” in negative impacts. One of the main recognitions listed is illicit arms and then the associated issues of “trafficking, violence, crime” and drugs. These become tied up with the trafficking of women and girls.
–(Updated 2018-11-10, only use the updated listing, please) One can find similar statements in other documents, conventions, declarations and so on, with the subsequent statements of equality or women’s rights:
- The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the Preamble, Article 16, and Article 25(2).
- Convention Against Discrimination in Education (1960) in Article 1.
- The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966) in Article 3, Article 7, and Article 13.
- International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966).
- Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979).
- Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984).
- The Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and the optional protocol (1993).
- Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995), Five-year review of progress (2000), 10-year review in 2005, the 15-year review in 2010, and the 20-year review in 2015.
- United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000), and the UN Security Council additional resolutions on women, peace and security: 1820 (2008), 1888 (2009), 1889 (2009), 1960 (2010), 2106 (2013), 2122 (2013), and 2242 (2015).
- Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children (2000).
- The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa or the “Maputo Protocol” (2003).
- Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence or the Istanbul Convention (2011) Article 38 and Article 39.
- UN Women’s strategic plan, 2018–2021
- 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
- 2015 agenda with 17 new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (169 targets for the end to poverty, combatting inequalities, and so on, by 2030). The SDGs were preceded by the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) from 2000 to 2015.
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