OZAMIZ CITY -- A group advocating the elimination of the use of cluster bombs called for Philippine ratification of the Convention on Cluster Munitions in order to improve the current “discourse, policies, and practices for (dealing with) explosive remnants of war and civilian protection in the country.”
“Although we do not have an actual problematic presence of cluster bombs, we do not want it to have a problematic presence in the country, similar to the threat of landmines and unexploded ordnance,” said the non-government Philippine Campaign Against Cluster Munitions (PCCM).
Cluster munitions are explosive weapons that eject smaller sub-munitions or bomblets designed to kill enemy personnel and destroy vehicles. These weapons are either launched from the air or the ground.
“Unexploded cluster bombs upon impact become de facto landmines, thus continuing to kill and injure innocent people long after the conflict has ended,” PCCM explained.
The PCCM is working towards the universal banning of cluster munitions through the Convention on Cluster Munitions which was signed by 94 states in Oslo in December 2008. It is expected to enter into force on August 1, 2010 and become a binding international law.
Although the Philippines was among the five Asian countries who signed the Convention, it has yet to ratify the instrument.
The PCCM said it is looking forward to a local mine clearance campaign to provide the groundwork for its effort against the use, production, and stockpiling of cluster munitions among military forces, whether of government or rebel groups.
Both government and the MILF have agreed to jointly remove landmines and unexploded ordnances in the once war-torn communities of Mindanao.
Last month, their respective peace negotiating panels approved the Implementing Guidelines on the Clearing of Landmines and Unexploded Ordnances in Conflict-Affected Areas.
The PCCM said the formulation of the guidelines implies an important acknowledgment by both parties of the existence of mine and unexploded ordnances in some areas, and also signifies their recognition that they have a role to play “in eradicating the threat posed by these remnants of warfare.”
Even prior to their agreement to jointly remove landmines in Mindanao’s war-torn areas, both parties have signified separate commitments to confront the problem through international instruments.
The Philippines is a signatory and state party to the Ottawa Treaty, more known as the Mine Ban Treaty of 1997, which sought prohibition of victim-activated anti-personnel mines.
The MILF, on the other hand, signed the Rebel Group Declaration of Adherence to International Humanitarian Law on Landmines in October 2008.
The declaration “allows non-state armed groups to adhere to, become accountable for, and generate assistance for compliance with the key norms, standards, and undertakings of existing international humanitarian law on landmines.”
The PCCM said the mine clearance campaign makes safer the communities of internally displaced people who have been eager to go home and restart their lives ruined by war.
Apart from the International Monitoring Team (IMT), the mine clearance campaign of the government and MILF is undertaken with the Philippine Campaign to Ban Landmines (PCBL) and the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD) as key partners.