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Arms Human Rights Watch Observations on the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) Draft Protocol on Cluster Munitions Prepared for the Meeting of the CCW Group of Governmental Experts States parties to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) have spent most of 2008 developing a proposal to address the humanitarian impact of cluster munitions. At the third session of the CCW’s Group of Governmental Experts in July 2008, states considered the draft text of a protocol to regulate cluster munitions circulated by chair Ambassador Bent Wigotski of Denmark. For Human Rights Watch, this draft protocol is “too little, too late.” It is too little because it does not go far enough in tackling the challenges posed by cluster munitions and too late because it falls far short of the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) that 107 states adopted on May 30, 2008. September 2, 2008 Printer friendly version Background on Russia and Cluster Munitions The Russian Federation was not part of the Oslo Process launched in February 2007 to develop a new international treaty banning cluster munitions. In May 2008, 107 nations adopted the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which comprehensively bans the use, production, trade and stockpiling of the weapon. It will be open for signature in Oslo on December 3, 2008. August 14, 2008 Printer friendly version Interoperability and the Prohibition on Assistance Memorandum to Delegates of the Dublin Diplomatic Conference on Cluster Munitions A provision obliging states parties not to assist with prohibited acts is an accepted and essential part of a modern weapons treaty. The draft cluster munitions convention includes such a provision in Article 1(c). Article 1(c) is based on extensive precedent from past weapons treaties and is indispensable to the humanitarian goal of the convention. Because it prevents states parties from contributing even indirectly to the use of cluster munitions, it promotes the object and purpose of the treaty, which is to minimize civilian harm from the weapons. It also stigmatizes cluster munitions by declaring that states parties will not tolerate their use by anyone and contributes to deterring use by non-states parties. May 19, 2008 Printer friendly version Cluster Munitions and the Proportionality Test Memorandum to Delegates of the Convention on Conventional Weapons The calls for a new international legal instrument to ban or restrict cluster munitions derive in large part from the weapons’ significant and foreseeably grave aftereffects on civilians, which have been thoroughly documented by many, including Human Rights Watch. States parties to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) took a first step toward reducing the impact of unexploded submunitions with CCW Protocol V on Explosive Remnants of War (ERW), but this instrument only provides post-conflict remedial measures. Because the severe and long-lasting aftereffects of cluster munitions on civilians are foreseeable, they can and must be prevented. This paper contends that to reduce civilian harm through preventive measures, the aftereffects of cluster munitions must be taken into account when applying the proportionality test. April 7, 2008 User State Responsibility for Cluster Munition Clearance Memorandum to Delegates of the Wellington Conference on Cluster Munitions A cluster munition convention offers the international community an opportunity not only to prevent future use of cluster munitions, but also to eliminate the existing threat to civilians from remaining cluster duds. It should do so by adopting some version of the international cooperation provisions discussed in this memorandum. They will help advance the core goal of the convention, which is to prevent humanitarian harm to the civilian population February 19, 2008 Survey of Cluster Munitions Produced and Stockpiled Briefing Paper Prepared for the ICRC Experts Meeting on Cluster Munitions This presentation is an introduction to the wide variety of cluster munitions currently available. The functional characteristics of these munitions as well as estimates of the numbers in current stockpiles are included in the presentation. April 25, 2007 Survey of Cluster Munition Policy and Practice In armed conflicts around the world, cluster munitions are the category of weapons most in need of stronger national and international law to protect civilians from harm. This survey provides a global overview of cluster munitions, timeline of their use since 1943, country profiles of the more than 70 nations known to stockpile cluster munitions, and the applicability of international humanitarian law on the use of these weapons. February 20, 2007 The “Hoax” That Wasn’t The July 23 Qana Ambulance Attack During the Israel-Hezbollah war, Israel was accused by Human Rights Watch and numerous local and international media outlets of attacking two Lebanese Red Cross ambulances in Qana on July 23, 2006. Following these accusations, some websites claimed that the attack on the ambulances “never happened” and was a Hezbollah-orchestrated “hoax,” a charge picked up by conservative commentators such as Oliver North. These claims attracted renewed attention when the Australian foreign minister stated that “it is beyond serious dispute that this episode has all the makings of a hoax.” December 19, 2006 Also available in 
Explosive Remnants of War: States Parties’ Responses to “International Humanitarian Law and ERW” Questionnaire Memorandum to Delegates to the Convention on Conventional Weapons This memorandum contains an updated analysis of the responses provided by states parties to the questionnaire on explosive remnants of war and international humanitarian law issued by members of the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) Working Group on Explosive Remnants of War in 2005 . Human Rights Watch believes that the responses to date lead to the conclusion that national implementation measures, especially with regard to cluster munitions and the submunitions they dispense, are not adequate, and that additional measures are required to ensure adequate protections for civilian populations. March 6, 2006 Printer friendly version Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW): Responses to the IHL and ERW Questionnaire and the McCormack Report Memorandum to Delegates to the CCW In March 2005, members of the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) Working Group on Explosive Remnants of War (ERW) issued a questionnaire to states parties regarding ERW and International Humanitarian Law (IHL). Based on the questionnaire responses and state practice to date, Human Rights Watch believes that a new legally binding instrument specific to cluster munitions is required in order to avoid a future humanitarian crisis. With respect to cluster munitions, clearer and broader law is needed because interpretation of relevant IHL is too inconsistent, effective implementation globally is unlikely, and enforcement would be strengthened with a new instrument. March 6, 2006 Printer friendly version Back in Business? U.S. Landmine Production and Exports The Bush administration appears poised to erase many of the positive steps the United States has taken in the past toward banning antipersonnel mines. The United States will decide in December 2005 whether it will begin the production of a new antipersonnel mine called Spider. According to a media report, which the Pentagon has yet to confirm or deny, in May 2005 the U.S. Army was to begin deploying to Iraq a new remote-controlled landmine system called Matrix, which relies on technology developed for Spider. In addition, the Pentagon has requested a total of $1.3 billion for development and production activities for another new antipersonnel mine called the Intelligent Munitions System, with a full production decision expected in 2008. August 3, 2005 Printer friendly version Time to Take Stock: The U.S. Cluster Munition Inventory and the FY 2006 Department of Defense Budget No weapons used by U.S.-led coalition forces in Iraq in 2003 caused more civilian casualties than cluster munitions, large weapons that contain dozens or hundreds of smaller submunitions. This briefing paper critically examines the status and quality of current U.S. cluster munition stockpiles and assesses in detail the Department of Defense’s (DoD) fiscal year 2006 (FY 2006) budget requests related to such weapons. It concludes that, despite recent positive developments in its cluster munition policy and procurement practice, the United States retains—and still is willing to use—at least 728 million old, unreliable, and inaccurate cluster submunitions. July 21, 2005 Worldwide Production and Export of Cluster Munitions The potential future dangers of widespread production and continued proliferation of cluster munitions demand urgent action to bring the humanitarian threat under control. At least seventy countries stockpile cluster munitions and the aggregate number of submunitions in these stockpiles is staggering. April 7, 2005 Printer friendly version Cluster Munitions and International Humanitarian Law The Need for Better Compliance and Stronger Rules The States Parties to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) have long recognized the dangers of cluster munitions. They first questioned the civilian harm these weapons cause at the Lucerne Conference in 1974 that eventually led to the CCW. Over the past several years, the Group of Governmental Experts has addressed cluster munitions as part of the ongoing discussions on explosive remnants of war (ERW). For 2004, the ERW working group has a mandate “to continue to consider the implementation of existing principles of international humanitarian law” (IHL). July 1, 2004 Printer friendly version Cluster Munitions Too Costly: Department of Defense FY 2005 Budget Requests Related to Cluster Munitions A Human Rights Watch Briefing Paper, June 2004 The United States Department of Defense Fiscal Year 2005 budget, which covers October 2004 to September 2005, includes several requests for procuring cluster munitions or their subparts. The Army, Marines, Air Force, and Navy all seek funding for variations of these weapons. June 30, 2004 New U.S. Landmine Policy: Questions and Answers What is new about this policy? The Bush Administration’s policy on landmines, announced February 27, 2004, reverses many of the positive steps the U.S. has made over the past decade to eradicate antipersonnel mines. The use of self-destructing mines is permitted indefinitely without any geographic restrictions. The use of long-lived antipersonnel mines is now permissible in Korea until 2010. The only apparent surviving element of previous landmine policy is the 1992 legislative ban on antipersonnel mine exports, in effect through 2008, which could not be overturned by Presidential directive. February 27, 2004 Printer friendly version Human Rights Watch Position Paper on “Smart” (Self-Destructing) Landmines The concept of smart (i.e., self-destructing) mines certainly has humanitarian allure. In theory, a mine that blows itself up in a relatively short period of time is preferable to a mine that lasts for decades, and should pose less danger to civilians. A smart mine MAY be a safer mine, but it is NOT a safe mine -- there will still be unacceptable risks for civilians, there will still be new mine victims, and the clearance task (while less dangerous) will be just as time-consuming and costly, perhaps even more so. One can argue that in some ways smart mines could pose even greater dangers to civilians because of the large numbers used in a random fashion. February 27, 2004 Printer friendly version Human Rights Watch Position Paper on “Smart” (Self-Destructing) Landmines The concept of smart (i.e., self-destructing) mines certainly has humanitarian allure. In theory, a mine that blows itself up in a relatively short period of time is preferable to a mine that lasts for decades, and should pose less danger to civilians. A smart mine MAY be a safer mine, but it is NOT a safe mine -- there will still be unacceptable risks for civilians, there will still be new mine victims, and the clearance task (while less dangerous) will be just as time-consuming and costly, perhaps even more so. One can argue that in some ways smart mines could pose even greater dangers to civilians because of the large numbers used in a random fashion. February 27, 2004 The Regional Crisis and Human Rights Abuses in West Africa A Briefing Paper to the U.N. Security Council The United Nations Security Council's mission to the West African region comes at a critical juncture. There have been some significant positive developments in the region in the past year, namely progress in the restoration of peace and accountability in Sierra Leone. At the same time, the West African sub-region has experienced two serious setbacks: the outbreak of conflict in Côte d'Ivoire and the resurgence of the Liberian war. June 20, 2003 Printer friendly version Cluster Munitions a Foreseeable Hazard in Iraq The use of cluster munitions in Iraq will result in grave dangers to civilians and friendly combatants. Based on experiences in the Persian Gulf War in 1991, Yugoslavia/Kosovo in 1999, and Afghanistan in 2001 and 2002, these dangers are both foreseeable and preventable. March 18, 2003 |
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