- © Wellington
The Wellington Conference took place from February 18-22, 2008, and brought together 122 countries, members of civilian society and victims from 38 countries. At the end of the conference, 82 nations signed the Wellington Declaration, calling for the drawing up of a strong and uncompromising treaty in Dublin in May. Since then, ten other nations have added their signatures.
Nonetheless, France, which was initially at the head of the movement to weaken the treaty, and the United Kingdom have clearly indicated that they will rest on their positions and will negotiate firmly in this direction in Dublin.
The Wellington Conference is a crucial step in the process: it gave rise to a declaration that the member nations must approve before being able to negotiate the terms of a definitive treaty in Dublin, from May 19-30. In spite of tensions, many countries have as of now approved this declaration that commits the nations to negotiating on the basis of a proposed text with no exceptions.
