Four years have now passed since the Convention on Cluster Munitions entered into force in August 2010 and we are encouraged by the impressive overall compliance witnessed to date.
As our latest annual report assessing compliance—Cluster Munition Monitor 2014—confirms, there have been no allegations of use, production, or transfer by States Parties, while they are destroying more than a million stockpiled cluster munitions and millions of submunitions. States Parties are steadily clearing cluster munition remnants and efforts are underway to implement the convention’s victim assistance obligations.
States Parties and signatories are cooperating closely with partners including the Cluster Munition Coalition to promote universalization of the convention in accordance with Article 21. We hope to see this work pay off as more nations join and as signatories complete their ratification.
While compliance with the Article 7 transparency reporting requirement has been disappointing, this week our campaigners have engaged in constructive discussions with States Parties that have yet to submit their reports. It has been helpful to talk through what the reporting obligation entails, including practical questions about the format, required content, delivery address, and timeframe. We will continue to engage back in capitals and hope to see results in terms of timely and effective reporting.
We also appreciate the dialogue we’ve had with many of you concerning the need for national legislation to enforce and implement the Convention on Cluster Munitions. As the report released by Human Rights Watch this week shows, the specific laws enacted by 22 States Parties to date contain many useful and positive aspects that may be helpful for others considering legislation. We encourage all states to ensure that the Article 9 obligation is met through strong and comprehensive national legislation.
Finally, as the Monitor has reported, we again flag the key challenge that our community must address, which is non-compliance with the international norm against any use of cluster munitions that the convention seeks to establish. The current use of cluster munitions in non-signatories Syria and Ukraine, and the instance of use in South Sudan is deeply disturbing for the lives that have been lost and legacy of remnants that will endanger civilians for years to come.
We are encouraged by the many expressions of concern and condemnations that have been made this week by States Parties, signatories, and non-signatories of these cluster munition attacks For us, it sends a strong signal that this convention and international law must be respected by all.
As we leave San Jose, the sense of outrage against cluster munition use that was felt so strongly this week must be retained. We urge all of you to continue to follow-up and use every available opportunity to condemn each and every instance of use.
We also call on you to do all you can to adhere to every aspects of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, including adopting national implementation legislation, submitting your transparency reports, discouraging use, and promoting universalization.
It is worth noting that States Parties to our sister convention, the Mine Ban Treaty, recently agreed to create a Cooperative Compliance Committee to ensure that potential compliance issues are addressed in a timely and systematic way. We encourage States Parties to this convention to consider the same – to learn the lesson now and not years into the future that such a body is needed and useful.
The next time we come together again to consider substantive matters will be the intersessional meetings in June 2015. It is crucial that we collectively stay strong and united in our effort to rid the world of these appalling weapons that have caused and continue to cause so much suffering.
Thank you.
