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Working Group 3
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This site is hosted by the International Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO)

Working Group 3:
Armed violence


This working group is split into three sub-themes:

1. Small arms and warfare
  • The role of transfers of small arms in the outbreak, continuation and resolution of warfare.
  • The role of accumulations of small arms in the outbreak of warfare.


    • 2. Armed violence:
  • The primary determinants of armed violence. Including both the relationship between the availability of small arms and armed violence; and the influence of other contributory factors, such as socioeconomic inequality, social norms, societal attitudes toward violence, and childhood exposure to violence.
  • European firearm laws and regulations. Measuring the efficacy of European regulations and identify instances where better regulation could contribute to reducing casualties
  • Armed violence and development. An important focus will be upon the role of European development assistance in reducing armed violence and its consequences. Of particular importance will be assistance programmes for security sector reform to prevent misuse of small arms.
  • The factors that may link law enforcement operations and civilian use/misuse of small arms.


    • 3. Cross cutting issues:
  • The humanitarian effects of small arms violence
  • Gender and small arms violence
  • Weapons collection and destruction in post-conflict and pre-conflict situations



    • Meetings

    Bradford    , CICS, 24 & 5 September 2004, WG 1 & 3 Meeting on small arms, development, and armed violence. [Download Bradford meeting minutes here.]

    Geneva    , Small Arms Survey,15 March 2005,  WG 1 & 3 Meeting on European crime data and firearms violence.
    [Download Geneva meeting agenda, list of participants, and minutes] 
    [Download the presentations: Catherine Barber - HSPH; Doris Ma Fat - WHO; Jerry Tate - Interpol; Hidde Toet - ECSI; Martin Killias - ICDP; John van Kesteren - UNICRI; Anna Alvazzi del Frate - UNODC]

    Bonn, BICC, 17 & 18 November 2005, WG1 & 3 Meeting on "Gun Culture(s)" 
    [Download Bonn meeting minutes here]

    Bonn, BICC, 9 & 10 February, 2006 Working Group 3 Meeting on the role of armed private security actors in armed violence. [Download the presentations by Gounev;  Jackson; Boshoff; and Isenberg] [Download the meeting notes here]

    Helsinki, 8 September 2006. Working Groups 1 and 3 meeting on morbidity and firearms, held in conjunction with the IPPNW World Congress. Download the meeting summary from here; and PowerPoint presentations:
    Ime John, Framing the issue - impacts of small arms on health.
    Keith Krause, Public health challenges.
    Robert Mtonga, War or health.

    Nicoscia 28-29 May. WG 2 & 3 meeting on arms flows and conflict; organised by Intercollege and PRIO
    Download the draft outline here, and the letter of invitation here.

    Geneva, 4-5 June 2007. WG 1 & 3 meeting on costing armed violence; organised by the Small Arms Survey
    Download the draft outline here.