Arg_4Dec09As part of the 100-day countdown to entry into force of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, campaigners in New Zealand have been contacting governments to urge them to support the ban.  This week, campaign representatives in Wellington met with diplomatic representatives from Argentina and Vietnam.   Thailand was not available and Brazil did not respond to the coalition’s request for a meeting.



Argentina - On 28 May 2010 (EIF-65), the ANZCMC met with Pedro Ezequil Marotta, First Secretary at the Embassy of Argentina in Wellington to discuss Argentina’s position on signing the Convention on Cluster Munitions.  Argentina’s objections to the treaty include articles 2 (definition) and 21 (interoperability).   The ANZCMC said that the definition in the convention was the responsibility of a New Zealand diplomat (Amb. Don MacKay) so both government and the campaign feel a responsibility to tackle head-on any arguments made to discredit it.  Marotta, who participated in the Wellington Conference, said Argentina is studying the issue. He promised to report back to capital. For more information, please see:

  • ANZCMC request letter (PDF)
  • CMC action alert on Argentina issued May 2010

Vietnam - On 26 May 2010 (EIF-67], the ANZCMC met with Vietnam’s Ambassador Vuong Hai Nam and Nguyen Le Thanh, Second Secretary at the Embassy of Viet Nam in Wellington. The ambassador provided a one-page statement detailing “Vietnam’s Position on the Convention on Cluster Munitions.” He highlighted key concerns, including that several important states have not joined, the definition (tackles old weapons, not new ones), and the need to require user responsibility for clean-up.  According to the ambassador, who participated in the Wellington Conference, an inter-agency committee has been studying the convention and how to participate. For more information, please see:

PHOTO: Ambassador Martín Balza of the Argentina Embassy in Colombia with Senegalese landmine survivor Mamady Gassama © Mary Wareham, Cartagena, 4 December 2009

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