New Zealand

New Zealand signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions in Oslo on 3 December 2008. On 2 April 2009, New Zealand’s Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control Georgina te Heuheu stated that legislation to ratify and implement the convention would be introduced in the New Zealand parliament in 2009.^[1] The ratification package prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade was submitted to Cabinet in April 2009 for parliamentary approval.^[2]

New Zealand was a member of the “Core Group” of nations that took responsibility for the Oslo Process and the development of the Convention on Cluster Munitions outside of traditional diplomatic fora. New Zealand hosted a crucial meeting of the Oslo Process in Wellington in February 2008. During the treaty’s negotiation, New Zealand’s disarmament ambassador played a pivotal role in securing agreement on the definition of a cluster munition.

In February 2008, New Zealand stated that it “does not possess, will not acquire and will not use cluster munitions.”^[3]

New Zealand is party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW), and ratified Protocol V on Explosive Remnants of War on 2 October 2007.

Cluster Munition Ban Policy

New Zealand was an early supporter of diplomatic efforts to deal with cluster munitions.^[4] In September 2006, then Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control Phil Goff, said, “The disastrous consequences of the use of cluster bombs in Lebanon in the recent conflict there demands a stronger stand by the international community to restrict and regulate the use of cluster munitions.” The minister noted, “Promoting the campaign for the creation of a legally binding agreement strengthens New Zealand’s position on cluster munitions and adds our voice to a growing international movement demanding action on these weapons.”^[5]

At the CCW Third Review Conference in November 2006, New Zealand supported a proposal for a mandate to negotiate a legally-binding instrument “that addresses the humanitarian concerns posed by cluster munitions.”^[6] When other CCW States Parties rejected such a mandate, New Zealand joined 25 nations in supporting a declaration calling for an international agreement that would prohibit the use of cluster munitions “within concentrations of civilians,” prohibit the use of cluster munitions that “pose serious humanitarian hazards because they are for example unreliable and/or inaccurate,” and require destruction of stockpiles of such cluster munitions.^[7]

Norway then announced that it would start an independent process outside the CCW to negotiate a treaty banning cluster munitions that cause unacceptable harm to civilians, and invited other governments to join. A voluntary “Core Group” of countries emerged to take responsibility for moving forward what became known as the Oslo Process, and New Zealand was one of six initial countries in the Core Group.

New Zealand was one of the most active participants throughout the Oslo Process, from the international conference to launch the process in February 2007, to the three subsequent international conferences to develop the convention text in Lima in May 2007, Vienna in December 2007, and—as the host—Wellington in February 2008, to the formal negotiations in Dublin in May 2008.

New Zealand was a co-chair during the first conference in Oslo on 22–23 February 2007, and was one of the 46 states that endorsed the Oslo Declaration, committing states to conclude in 2008 an international instrument prohibiting cluster munitions that pose unacceptable harm to civilians. During the Oslo conference, New Zealand offered to convene a meeting of the Oslo Process. According to Minister Goff, New Zealand decided to support the process because the CCW had “regrettably failed to agree on a mandate to launch negotiations to restrict cluster munitions use. That was, in our view, an unacceptable outcome. We have therefore embarked on the alternative route of mobilising support to limit the use of cluster munitions.”^[8]

On 22 March 2007, a group of NGOs met in Wellington and agreed to establish the Aotearoa New Zealand Cluster Munition Coalition (ANZCMC). This is believed to be the first national coalition in the world dedicated specifically to tackling cluster munitions.

At both the Lima and Vienna conferences, New Zealand’s Disarmament Ambassador Don MacKay chaired the discussions on the most hotly debated issue: the definition of a cluster munition. This was key because it would determine how broad and comprehensive the prohibition would be, and what, if any, types of cluster munitions would not be included. Ambassador MacKay also dealt with the difficult issues of transition periods and of general obligations and scope of the convention.

New Zealand convened the fourth international meeting of the Oslo Process at the Wellington Town Hall from 18–22 February 2008. The Wellington Conference on Cluster Munitions was the largest disarmament gathering ever held in the country.^[9] A total of 106 governments attended the meeting, while 20 more states registered, but did not participate due to last-minute travel and visa challenges. A delegation of 142 civil society participants from 43 countries attended the meeting, a quarter of them New Zealanders reflecting strong public interest in the issue.

Minister of Disarmament and Arms Control Phil Goff formally opened the conference, and spoke at an event in the national parliament and at the closing press conference.^[10] He used these opportunities to strongly challenge governments to meet the Oslo Process ban treaty objective. In Parliament, the Green Party helped sharpen the domestic debate by calling on the New Zealand Superannuation Fund’s to divest from its investments in companies involved in the production of cluster bombs. Throughout the conference civil society maintained a strong presence both inside and outside the formal meeting.^[11]

The principal outcome of the Wellington conference was a declaration endorsed by 82 governments on the final day of the meeting. The Wellington Declaration committed states to negotiate the convention to ban cluster munitions that pose unacceptable harm to civilians in Dublin, Ireland from 19–30 May, using the draft treaty text developed in Wellington as the basis for negotiations. In order to participate fully in the negotiations, a state had to endorse the Wellington Declaration. By 23 May 2008 (the last recorded update), a total of 119 states had endorsed the Wellington Declaration.^[12] Nine of the region’s 12 Pacific island nation states attended the Wellington conference, participating for the first time in the Oslo Process (Cook Islands, Fiji, Marshall Islands, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga, and Vanuatu).

The Wellington conference was the most contentious of the Oslo Process meetings, including the negotiations themselves. Over the course of the conference in intense plenary and break-out sessions, several countries, notably those who called themselves the “like-minded group,” submitted proposals to amend the draft treaty text. These were generally characterized by the CMC as efforts to weaken the draft text, and they did not generate widespread support among other states. With the like-minded group insisting that the proposals be further considered, the chair of the Wellington conference—Ambassador Don MacKay—placed the proposals together in a “Compendium” that was sent to Dublin along with the draft text to inform negotiations. Nevertheless, at the conclusion, the like-minded countries delivered a statement which expressed frustration with the proceedings of the Wellington conference.^[13] The CMC and many states expressed great satisfaction with the outcome, and in particular the refusal to yield to the demands of the like-minded group.

At the Dublin Diplomatic Conference on Cluster Munitions, New Zealand’s Ambassador MacKay was Friend of the Chair on definitions (draft article 1). In its opening remarks, New Zealand emphasized its commitment to a strong treaty and described the draft article as “fundamental” to the parameters of the convention, which it described as “a humanitarian instrument.”^[14] In addition to its role on the definition, New Zealand also put a priority on the provisions related to victims and victim assistance. It supported a broad definition of cluster munitions victim including families and communities.^[15] New Zealand supported the inclusion of a new article on “interoperability” (joint military operations with states not party) and in the end said it viewed the article as an acceptable compromise.^[16]

On 28 May 2008, when the President of the Dublin conference asked states if the draft text could be agreed, New Zealand was the second state to speak. Ambassador MacKay said that New Zealand considered the draft convention to be “a strong, balanced text that was ground-breaking in many respects” and “met the humanitarian objectives of the Oslo Process.”^[17] On the final day of the Dublin conference, Minister Goff warmly welcomed the convention, stating that, “The end result, while inevitably involving some compromise, has exceeded expectations.”^[18] The ANZCMC said “we achieved our goal” and “the New Zealand government and public should be proud of the crucial role they played in securing this agreement.”^[19]

New Zealand officials later elaborated on the issue of interoperability. At a 19 June 2008 NGO briefing, a foreign affairs official said, “We are pleased with the outcome [on Article 21]. It is an expression of the reality that United Nations operations have different obligations for the parties that participate. The Ottawa Convention was ambiguous. This is a strong provision because it encourages a very specific dialogue between coalition partners. It is black and white, and transparent. NGOs can lobby when states enter into coalition negotiation.”^[20] On 25 July 2008, Minister Goff wrote that the convention’s provision on interoperability “adds clarity to existing international law, and allowed a larger number of countries to join in endorsing the Convention.”^[21]

At the CCW in November 2008, New Zealand was one of 26 states that issued a joint statement expressing their opposition to the weak draft text on a possible CCW protocol on cluster munitions, indicating it was an unacceptable step back from the standards set by the Convention on Cluster Munitions.^[22]

On 3 December, New Zealand’s Ambassador MacKay signed the convention on the government’s behalf during the opening of the signing conference.^[23] In a statement to the plenary, MacKay described the convention as “proof that the international community can work together to take decisive action in the face of humanitarian suffering” and “proof that bold new steps are possible in the disarmament arena.”^[24]