Rights group lauds South Sudan’s assent to global Convention on Cluster Munitions
August 7, 2023 (WASHINGTON) – A U.S-based Human Rights Watch has lauded South Sudan’s accession to the international Convention on Cluster Munitions, saying the move is essential in the protection of human rights.
South Sudan acceded to the convention on August 3, becoming its 112th member nation.
The convention comprehensively bans cluster munitions and requires states parties to destroy their stockpiles, clear areas contaminated by cluster munition remnants, and provide assistance to victims of the weapons.
Cluster munitions can be fired from the ground by artillery, rockets, missiles, and mortar projectiles, or dropped by aircraft and many submunitions fail to explode on initial impact, leaving bomblets that pose long-lasting danger, like landmines.
“By banning cluster bombs, South Sudan is taking an important step to strengthen international peace and security,” said Mary Wareham, acting director at Human Rights Watch and chair of Cluster Munition Coalition.
“Other countries should follow South Sudan’s example because preventing new use of cluster munitions is a humanitarian and human rights imperative,” she added.
Following South Sudan’s expression of interest to join the convention, the executive Council of Ministers unanimously approved its accession to the convention in 2017 and referred the matter to parliament for approval.
The East African nation has, since its independence on July 9, 2011, participated as an observer at formal meetings of the convention. It, however, joined the international treaty banning antipersonnel landmines on November 11, 2011.
South Sudan provided voluntary transparency reports to the convention in 2020 and 2021, confirming that it does not possess any stocks of cluster munitions.
In May this year, South Sudan’s national assembly approved a proposal to accede to the 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions and the young nation deposited the instrument of accession with the United Nations on August 3.
There have been no reports or allegations of South Sudanese government forces using cluster munitions, but the country is contaminated from air-dropped and ground-launched cluster munition remnants left over from previous conflicts.
“Clearing landmines and explosive remnants of war is a critical way to help many Africans achieve safety and security in their daily lives,” noted Wareham.
She further added, “With this accession we hope that South Sudan receives greater support to continue its clearance and destruction of cluster munition remnants, landmines, and other weapons used in past conflicts.”
Human Rights Watch is a co-founder of the Cluster Munition Coalition, the global coalition of nongovernmental organizations working to eradicate cluster munitions and provides editing for its annual Cluster Munition Monitor report.
(ST)