The Cluster Munitions process (aka the Oslo process) was launched in February 2007, when a group of 46 states agreed to the Oslo Declaration, committing themselves to:
“Conclude by 2008 a legally binding international instrument that prohibit the use and stockpiling of cluster munitions that cause unacceptable harm to civilians and secure adequate provision of care and rehabilitation to survivors and clearance of contaminated areas”.
This commitment was reaffirmed in the Wellington Declaration of 22 February 2008, where states (105 per 6 May) also commit to negotiate such an instrument during the final negotiations in Dublin, 19 - 30 May 2008. The Draft Cluster Munition Convention will be the basis for the negotiations. States that want to participate in the negotiations need to endorse the Wellington Declaration and communicate this to the Conference organisers.
Civil Society participation will be coordinated by the Cluster Munition Coalition CMC. The United Nations,the International Committee of the Red Cross and other actors will also participate in the negotiations.
The first four conferences in the process took place in Oslo (21 - 22 February 2007), Lima (23 - 25 May 2007), Vienna (4 - 7 December 2007) and in Wellington (18 - 22 February 2008). In between these process events, a series of thematic and regional meetings will address the humanitarian effects and other aspects of cluster munitions.
