NATO'S High Moral Stance on Libya

One might question NATO's concern over civilians' safety and rights in Libya as does Dennis Kucinich, a U.S. Democratic Representative from the state of Ohio.

But then we can question US record which is one of the focus points of this entire blog regarding its use of Cluster Bombs and the long term concerns over their victims.

With the UK being a leading member of the NATO manoeuver in Libya we may also question it's credibility in particular when BP admits 'lobbying UK over Libya prisoner transfer scheme but not Lockerbie bomber'. For more on this see:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/oilandgas/7892112/BP-admits-lobbying-UK-over-Libya-prisoner-transfer-scheme-but-not-Lockerbie-bomber.html

The moral dilema can be seen more poignantly when viewed in historical terms. Take a look at these opinions below:


NATO responsible for civilian deaths in Libya: U.S. congressman
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-08/24/c_131069829.htm


The cluster bomb controversy
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2912617.stm


The Tet Offensive's parallels to Afghanistan
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2011/08/2011818133456460387.html

"If you dig down deep enough one finds that all conflicts have their root in natural resource allocation with layers of human emotion and passion to fuel the fire. Often times what a war’s stated purpose and cause isn’t really what it is all about."

A quote from Ship Bright, the Principal of BrightNGOsolutions offering consulting services to Philanthropists who desire to leverage their philanthropic dollars for the greater good as well as to nonprofit/NGO organizations on board development, mission focus, strategic planning, and fundraising. Ship can be contacted at brightngosolutions@gmail.com

CNN iReports, Live History of Cluster Bombs

CNN's iReports are a great outlet for peoples observations and comments on the world we live in and the misery our politicians create. Cluster Bombs get little global publicity unlike land mines despite there being millions more of them. Please view the submissions of a wide range of global contributers at:

http://ireport.cnn.com/search/ireports?q=cluster+bomb

These reports include more by Samantha Bolton the winner of first CNN iReport Award:

CNN iReport Awards - Clearing cluster bombs on the Ho Chi Minh Trail
http://ireportawards.cnn.com/2010/nominees/9/

Project Pineapple Helps to Inspire Award Winning CNN-iReport

I met Samantha Bolton in London last year, by chance, when I was being familiarised with another project regarding the changing oceans on our planet. I chatted with her for some time about what I was hoping my ride may help to achieve. The result is staggering - the award winning CNN-iReport, see below. Amazing what One Man and His Minsk can do.
CNN iReport Awards - Clearing cluster bombs on the Ho Chi Minh Trail
http://ireportawards.cnn.com/2010/nominees/9/

Video on Deadly Cluster Bomb Legacy in Laos Wins CNN Award

For Immediate Release

(London, 16 March 2011) – An original video news report on the devastating impact of cluster bombs in Lao PDR won the first-ever CNN iReport Community Choice Award, CNN announced on 15 March 2011.

The Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC) worked with reporter Samantha Bolton and an independent video production team to release the video, “Clearing cluster bombs on the Ho Chi Minh Trail,” from Lao PDR during during the historic First Meeting of States Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions in November 2010. The short video focuses on the decades-old cluster bomb problem in Lao PDR and documents the work being done today by civil society and governments to tackle the humanitarian problems caused by unexploded cluster bombs in affected countries around the world.

“To shoot this video, demining professionals walked us through forests infested with cluster bombs, where we saw how children playing and farmers ploughing still risk being blown up long after the Vietnam War ended,” said Bolton. “Getting the most votes to win the CNN iReport award shows just how many people and organisations care about eradicating cluster bombs in affected countries like Laos, and how good they are at mobilising. Great work everyone!”

The CNN iReport Community Choice award called on viewers to vote for the video they thought embodied the best of CNN iReport in 2010. Competition was stiff, with 30 nominees across six categories.

Background

The 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions comprehensively bans the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of cluster munitions, sets strict deadlines for clearance of contaminated land and destruction of stockpiles of the weapon, and includes groundbreaking provisions for assistance to victims and affected communities. A total of 108 countries have signed the treaty, which entered into force as binding international law on 1 August 2010.

Lao PDR hosted the Convention’s First Meeting of States Parties from 9-12 November 2010. This meeting was a defining moment in the life of the Convention, bringing together for the first time States Parties to the treaty, UN agencies, international organisations, civil society, and cluster bomb survivors. States shared progress and drew up an ambitious 66-point action plan to accelerate implementation of their treaty obligations.

As the most heavily cluster-bombed country in the world, Lao PDR was a highly appropriate venue for this meeting. Known locally as “bombies,” an estimated 80 million unexploded cluster submunitions remain in Lao PDR nearly four decades after armed conflict ended. Government surveys have recorded more than 50,000 civilian casualties caused by cluster bombs, landmines and other unexploded ordnance since 1964, and widespread contamination by explosive remnants of war hinders development. Holding such a meeting in an affected country helps to remind government officials and other participants why the treaty exists and why it must be implemented. The Convention’s Second Meeting of States Parties will take place in Lebanon, another heavily affected country, in September 2011.

The CMC calls on all countries – especially affected countries and former users and producers of cluster munitions – to join the Convention and work to implement its provisions.

To view “Clearing cluster bombs on the Ho Chi Minh Trail,” visit:
http://ireportawards.cnn.com/2010/nominees/9/

For more information on the CNN iReport awards, visit:
http://ireportawards.cnn.com/

CONTACT:
In Geneva, Samantha Bolton: +41-792392366
In Spain, Conor Fortune: +44-(0)7515575174 or conor@stopclustermunitions.org

TECHNICAL ANALYSIS OF CLUSTER MUNITIONS

Cluster munitions are weapons that work by dispersing several smaller submunitions, often referred to as bomblets or grenades, over a wide area to destroy dispersed, moving and unseen targets. A cluster munition consists of a canister and several submunitions. After being dropped or fired, the canister opens in mid-air and ejects its cargo of submunitions. These submunitions then scatter over the target area and are designed to explode on impact. Cluster munitions can be delivered from aircraft, via rockets, missiles or bombs. Cluster munitions can also be launched from land-based systems such as artillery, from rockets, artillery shells or missiles.Cluster munitions are area weapons. This means they have effects that are not confined to one precise target, such as an individual tank for example. Other examples of area weapons include napalm or incendiary bombs, or even nuclear weapons. Area weapons can be distinguished from point weapons, which attack single, pre-identified targets. An example of a point weapon is a guided missile set to destroy an anti-aircraft gun.

For complete analysis view:

http://www.stopclustermunitions.org/the-problem/what-is/?id=107

CMC Condemns Thai Use of Cluster Munitions in Cambodia

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – PRESS RELEASE

CMC condemns Thai use of cluster munitions in Cambodia
Thailand and Cambodia should join global treaty banning cluster munitions

(Bangkok/ Geneva, 6 April 2011) – Based on two separate on-site investigations, the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC) has concluded that Thailand used cluster munitions on Cambodian territory during the February 2011 border conflict. Thai officials confirmed the use of cluster munitions in a meeting with the CMC on 5 April.

This is the first use of cluster munitions anywhere in the world since the 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions entered into force and became binding international law. The CMC condemns any use of cluster munitions, and urges Thailand and Cambodia to immediately commit to no future use and to accede to the global treaty banning the weapons.

“It’s appalling that any country would resort to using cluster munitions after the international community banned them,” said Laura Cheeseman, director of the CMC. “Thailand has been a leader in the global ban on antipersonnel mines, and it is unconscionable that it used banned weapons that indiscriminately kill and injure civilians in a similar manner.”

In a meeting on 5 April, the Thai Ambassador to the UN in Geneva confirmed Thai use of 155mm Dual Purpose Improved Conventional Munition (DPICM) cluster munitions. The Ambassador said Thailand used cluster munitions “in self-defence”, using the principles of “necessity, proportionality and in compliance with the military code of conduct”. He alleged heavy use of rocket fire by Cambodian forces against civilian targets in Satisuk, in the Khun Khan district of Thailand.

In February and April of this year, CMC members conducted two separate missions to cluster munition contaminated areas in Cambodia including in Svay Chrum Village, Sen Chey Village and around the Preah Vihear temple hill, and witnessed unexploded submunitions and fragmentation damage caused by cluster munitions. Norwegian People’s Aid confirmed that unexploded M42/M46 and M85 type DPICM submunitions have been found.

Atle Karlsen of Norwegian People’s Aid said, “There are around 5,000 people living in Sen Chey village that are at risk from these unexploded weapons. Thailand must supply information to help clear affected areas and make them safe for civilians to return home.”

Sister Denise Coghlan, a CMC leader who took part in the first research mission said, “These cluster munitions have already robbed two men of their lives, two more have lost their arms and a further five were injured. The area must be cleared immediately to prevent more suffering. Cambodia must make every effort to ensure the safety of civilians.”

The CMC has urged Thailand to provide detailed information on the results of its inquiry, including the location of all cluster munition strikes, so that civilians can be adequately warned of the dangers and to assist the effective and efficient clearance of submunition remnants, which pose dangers like landmines. The CMC is also calling on Cambodia to accede to the Convention on Cluster Munitions and as interim steps commit to no use, make known the types and quantity of cluster munitions in its stockpile and start destruction.

Cambodia and Thailand are not among the 108 countries that have signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions but each has joined the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty. Both countries participated in the “Oslo Process” to negotiate the Convention on Cluster Munitions and attended its First Meeting of States Parties in neighbouring Lao PDR in November 2010.

“This conflict should spur both countries to take urgent action to denounce the weapons and join the ban treaty,” said Cheeseman.

The Convention on Cluster Munitions entered into force as binding international law on 1 August 2010, banning the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of cluster munitions, while requiring states to destroy stockpiles, clear contaminated land and assist victims and affected communities. Of the 108 countries that have signed the Convention since it opened for signature in December 2008, 55 countries have already ratified.

Contacts:
Sister Denise Coghlan
Cambodian Campaign to Ban Landmines and Cluster Munitions, Cambodia, +855-124-88950

Laura Cheeseman
Cluster Munition Coalition, UK, +44-7515-575-175

Photos of contamination in Cambodia
© Stéphane de Greef, Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor
http://www.flickr.com/photos/clustermunitioncoalition/sets/72157626310392061/with/5592080603/

+++

Detailed background
From 4-7 February 2011, Thai and Cambodian troops exchanged fire over disputed territory along the border near Preah Vihear temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site. On 10 February, the state-sponsored Cambodia Mine Action Centre (CMAC) reported (http://www.cmac.gov.kh/tblnews.php?id=68) it had evidence that Thai forces had fired cluster munitions into parts of Preah Vihear province.

CMC members undertook a research mission to the Cambodian side of the border on 12 February, where they witnessed and photographed submunitions that had failed to explode in two areas – the military and police base in Svay Chrum village and the Preah Vihear temple hill. In Svay Chrum, CMC members photographed unexploded cluster submunitions lying out in the open and numerous cluster munition remnants, as well as structures and a vehicle with physical damage consistent with that caused by cluster submunition explosions.

A cluster submunition allegedly exploded when a Cambodian policeman picked it up after the initial strike at the base, killing two policemen and injuring seven others. The research team interviewed two of the victims at Preah Vihear referral hospital in Tbeng Meanchey, who sustained fragmentation wounds to the arms, torso and head as well as interviewing two other victims in Siem Reap Provincial hospital who had each lost an arm in the explosion. When asked if they could identify the device that caused their injuries, each independently pointed to a picture of an M46 cluster submunition.

On a separate assessment mission carried out from 1-2 April 2011 by CMC member Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), 5 cluster munition contaminated areas were visited: Sen Chey village, Preah Vihear temple hill, a new village development area in Northwest Sraaem, an open agricultural field behind a military camp, and a police camp in Svay Chrum village. NPA identified M42/M46 and/or M85 type submunitions in all of these areas. An additional 7 areas have been identified by the Cambodia Mine Action Centre (CMAC) as being contaminated by cluster munitions as a result of strikes but it has not been possible for NPA to access these areas. The 12 cluster munition strike areas are within a 300km2 area according to CMAC.

CMC members photographed unexploded submunitions in the contaminated areas. http://www.flickr.com/photos/clustermunitioncoalition/sets/72157626310392061/with/5592080603/
CMC analysis of the photographs indicates that the submunitions are M46-types, contained in NR-269 155mm artillery projectiles. Each projectile contains 56 submunitions, which are a copy of the United States M46 submunition. Upon subsequent inquiries by CMC members, Thailand acknowledged possessing the NR-269 projectiles with M46-type submunitions. Unexploded M85 type submunitions with a self-destruct mechanism have also been found in an agricultural field next to the military camp.

Both countries possess stockpiles of cluster munitions, but little is known about their status or composition. The Cambodian government has in the past cited an ongoing review of its defence and security situation as the reason for a delay in joining the treaty. Thailand has cited concerns over its ability to destroy its stockpile as a roadblock to joining the Convention, as well as security concerns. Thailand announced in 2008 that it had no intention of using the weapons in the future.

Cambodia and Thailand are States Parties to the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty and Cambodia will host that treaty’s 11th Meeting of States Parties in November 2011.

South-East Asia is more heavily contaminated by cluster munitions than any other region after the United States dropped large numbers of cluster bombs on Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam in the 1960s and 1970s.

For more information on cluster munition policy and practice, please see the following Cluster Munition Monitor 2010 country reports:
• Cambodia
• Thailand
http://www.the-monitor.org/

Cluster Bombs 76 Million : ProjectPineapple 10,029

Some time during this first week of December 2010 Project Pineapple received hit number 10,000. A far cry-y-y-y-y-y-y from the 76 million hits the Americans have left active in Laos. But have you noticed? We, the concerned, are still hitting while the world opinion against the use of Cluster Bombs prevents the USA and others from hitting us with any more of these awful devices. So all those bullies out there with no conscience are slowly being shown for whom they are. Patience, bully boys and girls, we are coming after you in our masses and we are stopping you.

And the person who made hit number 10,000 comes from, appropriately:
United States Mountain View, California

Yeahhhh, good for you and I am sure you know who you are as I notice many hits coming from Mountain View. If you want to say Hello then please send an email to project.pineapple@yahoo.com