3 June 2008

Rotating Conference President Ambassador John Duncan of the United Kingdom opened the Conference on Disarmament (CD) and invited delegates from the Syrian Arab Republic, Ireland, the Republic of Korea, and the Netherlands to present their statements. The Syrian and Korean interventions focused on the proposed programme of work CD/1840, while the Netherlands' representative expressed frustration at the continued stalemate in the CD. The representative from Ireland presented a report from the Dublin Diplomatic Conference on Cluster Munitions, which ended on Friday, 30 May with the adoption of a legally-binding ban on cluster munitions that cause unacceptable harm to civilians.

Brief highlights

-Syria's representative provided comments on both the merits and problems of CD/1840, arguing that it keeps the door open to future proposals and work but is imbalanced, ultimately indicating his delegation "will do its best to reach an agreement on it."

-The Republic of Korea's representative commended CD/1840 as an improvement to last year's proposed programme of work.

-The Netherland's representative said that if the CD is unable to adopt a programme of work, he will not speak again in this forum for the rest of the year.

-Ireland's representative reported on the conference to ban cluster munitions and outlined the new treaty's provisions.

CD/1840
Ambassador Dr Faysal Hamoui of Syria praised the draft programme of work CD/1840, stating that the document has many positive elements, such as: keeping the door open for other proposals; implicitly affirming the importance of the four core issues and the linkages between them; and affirming that the work will be without prejudice to future work and negotiations on its agenda items. However, Amb. Hamoui also pointed out some of the document's drawbacks, including its imbalance—it calls for negotiations on a fissile materials cut-off treaty (FMCT) and only calls for discussions on the other three core issues, without stipulating "anything about the aim or outcome of the said discussions." Furthermore, the section on negotiating an FMCT does include reference to stocks or verification.

The Republic of Korea's Ambassador Chang Dong-hee insisted that CD/1840 "contains well crafted elements," including "a solid basis to begin negotiation on a Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT), and to commence substantive discussions on three other core agenda items." Acknowledging that a few problems have been pointed out by other delegations "with regard to the process and the format of the document as well as its contents," Amb. Chang argued that these difficulties can be overcome. He pointed out that since the text regarding FMCT negotiations does not include any preconditions, the concerns of some delegations can be discussed in a serious manner once negotiations begin.

Work of the CD
Expressing frustration at the continuing stalemate in the CD, Ambassador Johannes Landman of the Netherlands asked what it would mean should a programme of work be adopted tomorrow. He argued that it would mean "nothing more, but also nothing less, than that we are allowing ourselves, at last, some thorough reflection about how for heavens sake, we are going to do this in practice, these negotiations, and these three substantial discussions." He bitterly pointed out, "In the ten weeks that are left [in the 2008 session], and by that alone, we [would] at least take away the stigma, meriting by now the Guinness Book of Records of being the sole global body for disarmament not having been able to produce anything meaningful for twelve years, not even a focused agenda allowing operational reflection on such existential matters as disarmament, arms control, and non-proliferation."

He went on to reflect upon the position and role of diplomats, arguing, "diplomats are there to solve problems among themselves and for their governments. We are the chief advisors on the spot. If we are not able to agree to what are just submitted, we are really a poor lot. I myself feel ashamed, and increasingly regret ever to be offered this job, and even worse, to have accepted. If this small decision of us all, that is now imperatively required, can not be taken in the forthcoming days, it will not be taken at all." He then went on to say that without the "minimum performance" of adopting a programme of work, "I won't raise my body and my voice again in this body ... you won't hear from me anymore during the remaining of this year's session in this hall, it would be of no use at all."

Amb. Landman's argument that diplomats should be problem-solvers and advisors supports the view that the CD needs a deeper and freer engagement by representatives to the CD than we have seen in recent years—the majority of diplomats in multilateral disarmament fora seem to act primarily as mouth pieces for government policy rather than advisors to their governments or problem-solvers within the fora. As Reaching Critical Will argued in the 20 May CD Report, inspired by the comments of the Canadian ambassador to the CD, representatives to the CD need to engage in creative, open-minded conversations with each other and with other experts, advisors, and problem-solvers, to explore new options that might satisfy all parties' needs and interests. Rather than simply reiterating government positions, they need to outline their country's interests and collectively brainstorm compromises and strategies that can be transmitted back to their capitals.

We note with interest Amb. Landman's decision to not speak again for the rest of the CD's 2008 session unless a programme of work is adopted and are reminded of creative, nonviolent actions taken around the world in protest of increasing militarization and refusal by governments to listen to the overwhelming majority of their citizens who demand disarmament. On 13 May 2008, two Czech citizens, Jan Tamáš and Jan Bednar of a nonviolent movement against US bases in the Czech Republic, began a hunger strike against the proposed radar base that the United States wants to build on Czech territory as part of its "missile defense" system. They were joined by other strikes around the world, including in the United States. Tamáš and Bednar demanded an open discussion between citizens and the government about the base as well as an end to talks between the Czech and US governments. On 29 May, Tamáš and Bednar were granted a meeting with Czech Foreign Affairs Minister Karel Schwarzenberg, though feedback from that meeting indicated that the government was unwilling to accept any of their requests. They ended their hunger strike at midnight, 3 June, but others from around the world have already pledged to strike in their place.

We can't help but wonder, how many diplomats on hunger strike might it take to see progress in the CD?

Dublin Diplomatic Conference on Cluster Munitions
The representative from Ireland, Mr. James O'Shea, provided the CD with general information about the Dublin Diplomatic Conferencethat took place from 19 to 30 May 2008, where participants negotiated a new instrument of international humanitarian law banning cluster munitions that cause unacceptable harm to civilians. Quoting UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Mr. O'Shea emphasized that "A broad-based coalition of States, international organisations and civil society has brought about a new international standard that will enhance the protection of civilians, strengthen human rights and improve prospects for development."

111 nations adopted the landmark draft treaty, which prohibits the use, development, production, acquisition, stockpiling, retention, and transfer of cluster munitions. It also requires the destruction of stockpiles within 8 years and the clearance of cluster munition remnants within ten years. Participating nations are expected to sign the pact in Oslo in December.

Mr. O'Shea presented definitions and provisions for destroying stockpiles, clearance, and victim assistance. He also noted that the Convention requires annual reporting by states parties on the implementation of their obligations and that it includes provisions for states parties to cooperate militarily with states not party to the Convention who might use cluster munitions. These latter provisions include an obligation by all states parties "to promote the norms established by the Convention and make its best efforts to discourage States not party to the Convention from using cluster munitions."

Mr. O'Shea highlighted the importance of the Convention as a norm creator—he quoted Dr. Jakob Kellenberger, President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, who said, "We have also established a broader norm that those who engage in armed conflict can no longer just walk away from the long term consequences of the munitions they use and leave the burden to local communities, often in the poorest countries on earth, to deal with." From her final report from the Conference, Katherine Harrison, former WILPF disarmament intern, wrote, "Even States who called for broad exceptions or exceptions for their national stockpiles in the beginning of the negotiations agreed to adopt the treaty. The UK, one of the countries most strongly opposed to a complete prohibition, endorsed the Convention, following an unexpected announcement from Gordon Brown that the UK would accept a total ban and destroy its remaining two types of cluster munitions."

The new Convention demonstrates that progress on disarmament is being made outside of the CD. The idea that the CD is the "sole multilateral disarmament body," which Amb. Landman remarked has "been said so often in the past years that it has become almost a religious mantra of faith," is incorrect. While it is the sole body established for this purpose and remains the primary forum, both theOttawa Convention that banned landmines and now the cluster munitions convention show that the CD is not the only place where multilateral disarmament can take place.

Responding to the concerns raised by Amb. Landman, rotating Conference President Amb. Duncan stated that the success at the Dublin Diplomat Conference "flows directly from dissatisfaction at the existing international architecture for arms control and disarmament's ability to grapple with these issues." Acknowledging Amb. Landman's frustration, Amb. Duncan noted that the six presidents will continue with bilateral consultations "to see what can be achieved in the coming weeks that lie ahead of us."

The next plenary meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, 10 June at 10am.

- Ray Acheson, Reaching Critical Will; Emma Rosengren and Sandra Fong, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom