Abstract
Under the Arms Trade Treaty, state parties must assess the extent to which the export of conventional arms might contribute to, inter alia, serious violations of human rights or international humanitarian law. The stated aims of Canada’s arms export licensing decision-making process are, similarly, to assess such risks on a case-by-case basis. This paper examines Canada’s ongoing arms transfer arrangements with Saudi Arabia in light of health-related international humanitarian and human rights law considerations enumerated in the Arms Trade Treaty. It assesses available information suggesting serious violations that implicate acts of commission by the Saudi-led coalition in the conflict in Yemen. The article centers on questions about the potential health-related consequences of Canadian-made, Saudi-coalition-used arms for people in Yemen and how risks are being assessed in export decision-making processes. Ultimately, it argues that Canada is failing to meaningfully take into account the possible negative impacts of its arms exports on people’s health and health care in Yemen. It counters the government’s approach to risk, which it argues is serviceable to exporter interests, with a health-based precautionary approach to exports.
Themes | Global Health & Humanitarianism |
Status | Active |
Related Work | |
Updates |
N/A
|
People |
Rhonda Ferguson, Research Fellow, Global Health Visioning Alum
Zarlasht Jamal, Research Assistant, Global Health Foresighting [W20] Alum |
You may also be interested in...
Upcoming Webinar Series on Climate Change and Global Occupational Health and Safety
The Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research, Global Labour Research Centre, and ReSTORE (University of Toronto) are proud to cosponsor CIFAL York's new Climate Change and Global Occupational Health and Safety speaker series. Climate change ...Read more about this Post
Dahdaleh Graduate Scholar Advocates for the Protection of All Civilians Against Violence in Israel and Gaza
Dahdaleh graduate scholar Sarah Khan recently published an article in the Policy Options where she discusses Canada's response to the Israel-Hamas conflict. The government initially condemned the terror attack on Israel and later called for a ...Read more about this Post
Recap – Inuit Perspectives: Health and Well-being Through Storytelling
On January 31, 2024, the Wellness Impact Lab at the Dahdaleh Institute kicked off its 3-part seminar series focused on Inuit perspectives on mental health and well-being, ‘Climate Change and Mental Health: Listening to the ...Read more about this Post