Oxfam New Zealand has issued a press release calling on the New Zealand government to do its utmost to secure a strong global ban on cluster munitions when it convenes a major diplomatic conference on the weapon in Wellington next February.

 “Cluster Bombs: All Eyes on Wellington as Oxfam Calls for Strongest Possible Ban”

Oxfam NZ Press Release, 7 December 2007

Oxfam New Zealand has called on the government to do its utmost to secure a strong global ban on cluster munitions when it convenes a major diplomatic conference on the weapon in Wellington next February.

“The eyes of the international community are now turning to New Zealand as the host of the next meeting in the process to establish the global treaty tackling cluster munitions,” said Mary Wareham of Oxfam New Zealand, Coordinator of the Aotearoa New Zealand Cluster Munition Coalition. “Our reputation is on the line here. It is absolutely critical that the New Zealand government host a successful meeting to build the groundwork for a treaty that covers all cluster munitions, including the so-called self-destructing clusters.”

Government and civil society representatives will convene in New Zealand from 18-22 February 2008 for the Wellington Conference on Cluster Munitions, to be held at Town Hall and organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The Wellington Conference follows a three-day meeting in Vienna that concludes today (Friday, 7 December). Representatives from more than 120 governments and over 140 civil society members from around 50 countries met in Vienna to discuss the draft treaty text, which is expected to cover the prohibitions on use, production, transfer and stockpiling of cluster munitions, as well as provisions for the clearance of cluster munition strike sites and assistance to victims of the weapon. The most contentious discussions revolved around the scope of the proposed prohibition, as well as the definition of a cluster munition.

“In course of the past year, the number of countries supporting a ban on cluster munitions has risen from a handful to two-thirds of the world’s nations,” said Wareham. “The tide is clearly turning against cluster munitions.

“We are confident a ban treaty will be concluded in 2008, but the true test will be in the strength of the text that is agreed and the number of governments that sign up. We are calling on the New Zealand government to do its utmost, including at the Wellington Conference, to craft a strong treaty that outlaws this morally reprehensible weapon.”

Oxfam New Zealand coordinates the Aotearoa New Zealand Cluster Munition Coalition, a national network of non-governmental groups established in March 2007 to support the global campaign against cluster munitions. See: www.stopclusterbombs.org.nz /Ends

TV3 News Item, 8 Dec. 2007

Civil society information on the Wellington Conference

NZ government official website on the Wellington Conference

Notes to Editors:

• Cluster munitions are weapons that can disperse hundreds of smaller submunitions – sometimes referred to as “bomblets” - over wide areas. They have indiscriminate wide area effects that kill and injure civilians during attacks and they leave severe and lasting humanitarian and development consequences from large quantities of post-conflict unexploded ordnance.
• After a November 2006 meeting of the UN Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) again failed to meaningfully address cluster munitions, Norway invited concerned states to Oslo to discuss the problem. Nearly all (46) of the 49 governments present at the February 2007 meeting agreed to an “ Oslo Declaration” committing them to conclude a legally binding international instrument by the end of 2008 1) . Prohibit the use, production, transfer and stockpiling of cluster munitions that cause unacceptable harm to civilians; and 2) Establish a framework for cooperation and assistance to survivors of cluster munitions and their communities, as well as clearance of contaminated areas.
• The “Oslo Process” meetings held in Vienna and Wellington are critical to building political support for the proposed treaty, which will be negotiated in Dublin, Ireland from 19-30 May 2008, then opened for signature in Oslo, Norway later in the year.
• According to HRW, At least 75 countries stockpile cluster munitions and 34 are known to have produced more than 210 types of cluster munitions. 14 states have used cluster munitions in at least 30 countries and territories.
• Eleven of the countries that stockpile cluster munitions are in Asia (China, India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Mongolia). Worldwide, 28 countries produce cluster munitions including seven from Asia (China, India, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Pakistan, and Singapore)

Comments