Cluster Munitions
Cluster munitions work by being launched, usually through artillery, missiles, or aircraft, which open in the air and release dozens or hundreds of submunitions. These small bombs spread over a wide area and are designed to explode when they hit the ground or a target.
Problem
Cluster munitions do not distinguish between military targets and civilians and continue to kill and injure civilians even after the end of a conflict. Many submunitions fail to explode and remain active for years or even decades. The failure rate varies from 10% to 40% and depends not only on the technological level of the weapon, but also on geographic and climatic factors.
The humanitarian impact caused by cluster munitions is similar to that of landmines. Unexploded submunitions threaten the lives and physical integrity of civilian populations during and after conflicts, limit freedom of movement, and hinder post-conflict development. In addition, 94% of confirmed victims of cluster munitions are civilians, and 47% of them are children (in 2023, more than 70%).
Territories contaminated by Cluster Munitions
Territories with victims of Cluster Munitions
Campaign
The Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC) was created in November 2003 with the objective of eradicating cluster munitions worldwide and putting an end to the suffering caused by them. The CMC is a network made up of hundreds of organizations and groups (including Dhesarme) present in more than 100 countries.
Like the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), the CMC led the global movement to ban cluster munitions, pressuring states to create a treaty banning the use, production, export, and stockpiling of these weapons and representing sectors of civil society in the so-called Oslo Process.
The Oslo Process was a series of diplomatic conferences held in 2007 and 2008 and led by the Norwegian government, which resulted in the creation of the Convention on Cluster Munitions in May 2008. Since then, the CMC merged with the ICBL and has worked toward the universalization and implementation of this convention.
Treaty
The Convention on Cluster Munitions was signed in 2008 and entered into force in 2010. It completely prohibits the production, storage, stockpiling, transfer, trade, and use of cluster munitions. It also establishes obligations for the destruction of existing stockpiles, the clearance of contaminated territories, and assistance to victims.
The convention, also known as the Oslo Convention on Cluster Munitions, has 112 signatory states and introduced important innovations by emphasizing victim assistance. This includes obligations related to adequate care and rehabilitation for survivors, as well as the promotion of risk education in contaminated areas.
Following the example of the campaign against landmines led by the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, the Cluster Munition Coalition created the Cluster Munition Monitor to monitor and inform the international community about the implementation and compliance with the convention. In addition, in 2015 the Convention on Cluster Munitions Implementation Support Unit was established to support and coordinate the work related to the convention.
States Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions
And Brazil?
Brazil produces, exports, and stockpiles cluster munitions. At least three companies have already produced cluster munitions in Brazil. Avibras Indústria Aeroespacial manufactures the ASTROS multiple rocket launcher system, which launches cluster munition rockets and has historically been exported to countries such as Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, and Zimbabwe.
Brazil participated only minimally in the Oslo Process and did not sign the Convention on Cluster Munitions. The Brazilian government argues that cluster munitions are militarily effective and represent important instruments of deterrence. In addition, Brazil maintains that the appropriate forum to address the problems caused by cluster munitions would be the United Nations, and that some of the terms used in the drafting of the treaty could harm certain defense industries.
Regarding humanitarian impacts, Brazil argues that these could be mitigated through technological improvements to cluster munitions. However, technical reports by specialists and past experiences with the use of cluster munitions point to the opposite conclusion.