For Jean-Baptiste Richardier, Executive Director Handicap International « In future, countries which are not signatories who wish to use this weapon will do so in the knowledge that they are resorting to an illegal weapon.  And that changes everything.»

• In what ways does the Convention on Cluster Munitions represent an historic breakthrough in terms of international humanitarian law?

Firstly, before we talk about an historic breakthrough, I think we ought to wait and see how many countries actually sign the convention. But this text, negotiated in Dublin, does nevertheless represent a genuine revival of the spirit of international humanitarian law. For nearly 40 years now the principles of discrimination, precaution and proportionality have been flouted through the use of cluster munitions. And every day our teams in countries like Laos, Afghanistan, Iraq, Kosovo and South Lebanon are documenting this directly.

• What impact did the members of the public who signed the petition have in the campaign against cluster munitions?

Once again, the influence of the public was decisive. Handicap International gathered over 700,000 signatures - 700,000 citizens who were asking their governments to abandon the use of a weapon whose consequences they considered to be unacceptable. What’s more, it’s the second time, along with the Ottawa Treaty banning landmines, that a disarmament treaty has been signed and where the initiative has come from civil society in the countries affected.

• What is the Oslo Convention going to change in concrete terms on the ground?

Despite the signing of the Oslo Convention, the process of mine clearance is of course going to take some time and we are justified in wondering if the funding is going to be sufficient for the task in hand. But the ban establishes a new international norm as of today. This will, on the one hand,  have an impact on the sale of these weapons, thereby reducing their use, while at the same time ensuring that any future use, even by countries which are not signatories, will be condemned. In future, countries which are not signatories who wish to use this weapon will do so in the knowledge that they are resorting to an illegal weapon.  And that changes everything.

• What impact will the convention have for the victims of cluster munitions?

One of the strengths of the convention is the article relating to victim assistance. From this point of view, the Oslo Convention is probably superior to the Ottawa Treaty. States have gone further in fully recognising the status of victim, setting out concrete obligations in terms of medical care and support. Handicap International has campaigned particularly hard on this aspect.

• What challenges need to be met post-Oslo?

As soon as the signing ceremony has taken place, the NGOs of the Cluster Munitions Coalition (CMC) will be campaigning to sustain the momentum of the process and to ensure that its scope is as wide as possible. In particular, they are going to monitor extremely closely the interpretations of certain ambiguities in the convention, such as the article relating to interoperability and the very definition of cluster munitions.
But the important thing for now is the weight which the convention carries in the light of the number of countries which sign it.
That’s what we’re campaigning on now. We’ll see about the rest in due course.