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1 2 Belgrade, 2017 3 FIREARMS MISUSE AND GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE Authors: Danijela Spasić PhD Marina Tadić Research Associates: Jelena Šapić Filip Stojanović Reviewers: Marina Hughson PhD Vladimir Bilandžić PhD Editor: Branka Anđelković Published by: Association CENTER. Public Policy Research Centre Proofreading: Antigona Andonov Translation: Uroš Vasiljević Design and prepress: Žolt Kovač The Public Policy Research Centre (CENTER) is a non-governmental Printed by: think tank established in July 2010 with the objective of examining Mala Knjiga the effects of public policies on security and the social and Print run: economic status of citizens. The CENTER’s goal is to enhance the 200 copies implementation of such policies or bring about changes to them. The publication of this study was made possible by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Serbia. The views expressed in this publication are solely those of the CENTER and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Serbia. 4 Danijela Spasić, PhD Marina Tadić FIREARMS MISUSE AND GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE 5 6 FOREWORD The research presented in this report was con- accession to the European Union, as well as the ceived by Svetlana Đurđević Lukić+, one of the implementation of activities envisaged under the co-founders and for many years the Director of National Action Plan (NAP) to implement Unit- the Public Policy Research Centre (CENTER), an ed Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on expert in small arms and light weapons and Women, Peace, and Security in Serbia, 2017-2020. human security. As a noted expert and member of the Govern- ment’s Working Party to draft the NAP, Svetlana In her research and analytical work Svetlana significantly contributed to addressing these is- continuously underscored the necessity and sues of strategic significance and developing the significance of controlling the proliferation and concept of the NAP. ownership of firearms, especially in a post-con- flict environment and with regard to the secu- Thanks are also due to our reviewers, Marina rity of particular vulnerable groups. Continuing Hughson PhD and Vladimir Bilandžić PhD, whose her research efforts, the CENTER’s team, headed proposals and suggestions contributed to shap- professionally by Danijela Spasić PhD, has in this ing the final content of the study. study highlighted the issues that hinder the effi- cient prevention of gender-based and family vi- The project ”Firearms Misuse and its Impact on olence involving firearms. In addition, the study Gender-Based Violence through Civic Action and provides a number of policy proposals that the Public Policy Advocacy“ was supported by the CENTER believes could contribute to the perfor- Royal Netherlands Embassy as part of its MATRA mance of obligations undertaken by action plans programme. for negotiating chapters 23 and 24 for Serbia’s Note: Words/terms used in this report in the masculine gender are to be understood as including persons of both male and female gender they refer to. 7 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS CAHVIO Istanbul Convention LGBT Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community MATRA (Maatschappelijke Transformatie) Social Transformation Programme Mol Ministry of Interior MoJ Ministry of Justice MoD Ministry of Defence MP Member of Parliament GP General Practitioner CO Case Officer CSO Civil society organization NAP National Action Plan GBV Gender-based violence SALW Small Arms and Light Weapons UNSC United Nations Security Council UNDP-SEESAC United Nations Development Programme South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons UNECE United Nations Economic Commission for Europe WHO World Health Organisation 8 TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword . 5 Abbreviations and Acronyms . 6 Table of Contents . 7 Summary . 9 Introduction . 11 Scope and objectives of the research . 13 Methodology . 15 Methodological limitations . 16 I CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK . 19 II CONTEXTUAL FRAMEWORK . 37 1. Femicide . 21 1. Quantitative findings . 39 1.1 Risk factors for lethal family and partner violence against 1.1. Firearms and femicide in Serbia . 39 women . 21 2. Qualitative findings . 43 2. Firearms and GBV . 23 2.1. Opinions of vulnerable groups . 43 2.1 Firearms misuse in the context of GBV and family violence . 23 2.1.1. Perceptions of GBV and family violence . 43 2.1.2. Perceptions of firearms possession and GBV (femicide) . 47 3. Firearms in Serbia . 25 2.2. Opinions of institutional representatives . 51 3.1. Legal framework governing firearms possession in Serbia . 25 2.2.1. Gender-based and family violence in Serbia . 51 3.2. How many firearms are there in Serbia? . 28 2.2.2. Opinions of institutional performance . 52 2.2.3. Role of the media . 53 4. Gender-based violence . 30 2.2.4. Firearms misuse and GBV and family violence . 54 4.1 Family violence . 30 4.2 Factors of family and partner violence . 30 4.3 Legal framework for protection from family violence in Conclusions . 57 Serbia . 31 Recommendations . 59 4.4 Law on Preventing Family Violence . 33 Literature . 63 4.5 State of play in Serbia . 35 9 10 SUMMARY Of the nearly 875 million pieces of small arms vant the sex of the victim – the fact that the victim and light weapons (SALW) globally, more than 75 is a woman.2 percent are to be found in the possession of indi- viduals and entities other than government-con- In view of these facts, the Public Policy Research trolled armed or police forces (private security Centre (CENTER) has continued the research contractors, private armies, paramilitary groups, efforts and professional expertise of its late etc.), or concealed in private homes. Research Director, Svetlana Đurđević Lukić, and conducted has revealed that women throughout the world research into firearms misuse and its impact on are not most at risk of injury and violent death gender-based violence (GBV) in a study entitled from SALW in the streets or battlefields, but rather ”Firearms Misuse and its Impact on Gender-Based in their own homes. The demographics of lethal Violence through Civic Action and Public Policy family violence involving SALW show that murder Advocacy“. The ultimate aim of this project was in the family is the only form of homicide where to mainstream this issue into relevant strategies women are victims much more often than men. and debates, and to formulate specific policy According to studies conducted by the World recommendations in connection with GBV and Health Organisation (WHO), murders of women firearms misuse in the context of European in- by their intimate partners account for between tegration, through Chapter 24 negotiations, the 40 and 70 percent of all murders of women.1 For new Law on Preventing Family Violence, Firearms every woman killed or exposed to physical vio- and Ammunition Law, etc., as well as through the lence involving firearms, there are far more wo- National Action Plan (NAP) to implement United men who face intimidation by firearms. ations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security in Serbia in the Findings of research into the impact of SALW period 2017-2020. on family violence indicate that firearms posse- ssion and family violence are linked. By collecting This research was complementary in character, and analysing newspaper articles, the Women and used both quantitative and qualitative ap- against Violence Network, co-ordinated by the proaches. The quantitative segment relied on Autonomous Women’s Centre of Belgrade identi- secondary analysis of data from statistical data- fied 33 murders of women in Serbia in a family/ bases held by government authorities (Ministries partner setting in 2016 (as compared to 35 such of the Interior and Justice) and civil society or- murders in 2015). In its quantitative and narrative ganisations (Women against Violence Network). Femicide Report, the Network stated that posse- In addition, documents making up the current ssion of and access to firearms were indicators of national legal framework in this area were also 1 L L Dahlberg, E G Krug, A J Mercy, high risk of lethal violence. Femicide is defined as reviewed. The qualitative approach entailed ex- A Zwi and R Lozano, World report on gender-based murder, committed against women, pert interviews with representatives of relevant violence and health. Geneva, World Health Organisation, 2002. young women, girls, or even female infants, by per- public authorities and civil sector institutions (a 2 Available online at http://www. sons of the male sex. For a murder to be characte- total of 14) and local focus-group interviews with zeneprotivnasilja.net/femicid-u-srbiji, rised as femicide, the perpetrator must see as rele- members of vulnerable groups (five in total) de- accessed on 29.5.2017. 11 voted to GBV and firearms misuse. We identified particularly in cases where firearms are not con- vulnerable groups as groups of individuals that fiscated, and underscored the importance of per- differ from the general population by a particular sonal accountability of professionals for action, characteristic that makes them especially vulner- or lack thereof, in the event violence is reported. able to various forms of discrimination – in this case, violence, as the most pronounced and most These examples show that, in spite of the widely dangerous form of discrimination. held belief that family violence and GBV are not commonly perpetrated using firearms, wide- The CENTER’s research revealed that economic spread firearms possession is a specific marker insecurity, poverty, unemployment, pressure ex- in assessing the risk of family violence and the erted by the patriarchal environment, violence institutional response to it under the Law on as ‘behavioural model’, risks specific to the local Preventing Family Violence. Moreover, it can be context, and mistrust of organisations and insti- concluded that family violence, as a form of GBV, tutions that ought to provide security, all con- is a complex phenomenon requiring tailor-made tribute to feelings of insecurity amongst women measures to prevent and combat.