New York, Jul 30 2010 10:10AM
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today expressed his delight at tomorrow's entry into force of the international convention banning the manufacture, use and stockpiling of <"http://www.mineaction.org/overview.asp?o=1417&status_flag=L&rand=0.5413935">cluster munitions, calling it a "major advance for the global disarmament and humanitarian agendas."
Thirty ratifications were needed to make the pact, which prohibits explosive remnants of war known either as cluster munitions or unexploded ordnance (UXO), part of international law.
That milestone was reached in February when Burkina Faso and Moldova both submitted their instruments of ratification of the Convention on Cluster Munitions at UN Headquarters in New York.
The Convention, Mr. Ban said in a <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=4697">statement issued by his spokesperson, "will help us to counter the widespread insecurity and suffering caused by these terrible weapons, particularly among civilians and children."
He is particularly pleased, the statement continued, that the pact will enter into force just over two years after it was adopted by 107 States in Dublin, Ireland.
"This highlights not only the world's collective revulsion at these abhorrent weapons, but also the power of collaboration among governments, civil society and the United Nations to change attitudes and policies on a threat faced by all mankind," the Secretary-General emphasized.
The Convention – negotiated by States that represent past and current producers, stockpilers and victims of cluster munitions – establishes important commitments regarding assistance to victims, clearance of contaminated areas and destruction of stockpiles.
To date, 37 countries have ratified the pact, which also has 107 signatures.
First used in the Second World War, cluster munitions contain dozens of smaller explosives designed to disperse over an area the size of several football fields, but often fail to detonate upon impact, creating large de facto minefields. They are also notoriously inaccurate.
The failure rate makes these weapons particularly dangerous for civilians, who continue to be maimed or killed for years after conflicts end. Some 98 per cent of victims are civilians and cluster bombs have claimed over 10,000 civilian lives, 40 per cent of whom are children.
Recovery from conflict is also hampered because the munitions place roads and lands off-limits to farmers and aid workers.
The first meeting of States parties to the Convention will be held this November in Laos, which the Secretary-General said is a country "that has suffered tremendously from the impact of cluster munitions."
Clearance operations are still ongoing in the South-East Asian nation more than 30 years after conflict left 75 million unexploded cluster bomblets across the country.
Mr. Ban called on all Member States to take part in the November meeting to express their support for the Convention, while also calling on those nations which have yet to accede to the pact "to do so without delay."
Jul 30 2010 10:10AM
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