Peter Power (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

I thank all Senators who welcomed me to the House. I join Senators Burke, Ormonde and others in sending our compliments and praise to all those involved in the production of this international agreement, in particular officials in the Department of Foreign Affairs who were involved in the drafting, redrafting and detailed negotiation of this international agreement, which is a victory for the diplomatic and negotiating skills of our officials. It enhances Ireland's reputation once again as an honest broker on the international stage and a country able to take a lead in these areas and to bring with it the vast majority of countries, in an inclusive manner, to produce an effective convention that meets overall agreement. I share in the praise expressed to all those involved in the process.

Senators raised a number of issues, with which I will deal later. I thank them for their contributions to this debate which were, as always, interesting and constructive. We will, prior to the taking of Committee and Remaining Stages of this Bill, reflect carefully on all the comments made this afternoon. I know all of us share the common objective of ensuring the timely passage of this important Bill to enable the earliest possible ratification by Ireland of the Convention on Cluster Munitions.

As indicated by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Bill provides in domestic law for the obligations the State will assume under the Convention on Cluster Munitions, CCM. Achieving a comprehensive international prohibition on the use, development, production, acquisition, stockpiling, retention and transfer of cluster munitions was an important objective of the programme for Government. It has been met early in the lifetime of the Government and it is, I believe, fair to say that the Oslo process and the Convention on Cluster Munitions exceeded the early levels of ambition of what could be achieved internationally on this issue.

As the House will be aware, the convention, which was adopted by consensus at the conclusion of the Dublin Diplomatic Conference at Croke Park last May, will be opened for signature at a ceremony in Oslo on 3 December. It will enter into force six months following its ratification by 30 states. The successful conclusion of negotiations on the CCM under Irish chairmanship represents one of the most significant contributions to the development of international humanitarian law in recent years and a major achievement in Irish foreign policy. As the Minister emphasised, the Government is anxious to develop further this excellent work by being in a position to sign and ratify the convention at the ceremony in Oslo next week. The enactment of the Bill facilitates this and will clearly demonstrate Ireland's commitment to promoting its earliest possible entry into force.

As Senators will know, the convention is the result of a common endeavour by governments and civil society and is an example of what can be achieved where these actors pool resources in pursuit of a shared objective. It is the result of widely-shared concerns at the unacceptable harm caused to civilians by cluster munitions at the time of their use — due to their wide-area effects — and following conflicts, when unexploded submunitions remain as a lethal hazard to civilian populations seeking to return to their homes, farms and places of employment. In recognition of the appalling humanitarian consequences that cluster munition use has had in the past, the 107 states that participated in the diplomatic conference in Dublin in May reached agreement on a very robust new instrument of international humanitarian law.

The Convention on Cluster Munitions establishes a comprehensive prohibition on the use, development, production, acquisition, stockpiling, retention and transfer of cluster munitions. "Cluster munitions" are defined for the purposes of the convention and the definition is reproduced, as it must be, in the Bill. Weapons systems with certain characteristics, which do not create indiscriminate area effects and the risks posed by unexploded submunitions, have been excluded from the definition and thus from the operative provisions of the convention that apply to cluster munitions. "Explosive bomblets" that are specifically designed to be dispersed or released from dispensers affixed to aircraft are subject to the same prohibitions as cluster munitions. These very robust definitions enable the convention effectively to prohibit all cluster munitions ever used in armed conflict. Moreover, the incorporation of the same agreed definitions into the domestic laws of all states-parties ensures consistency of implementation of the convention and enables those states to continue to co-operate with each other, in particular in peacekeeping missions, in accordance with its terms and its agreed standards.

In addition to the convention's comprehensive ban, its provisions on clearance of unexploded and hazardous cluster munition remnants and on assistance to the victims of cluster munitions, including their families, are a source of particular satisfaction to the Government. These provisions have been acknowledged as having set a new benchmark in international humanitarian law and the Government will integrate into our development assistance funding and co-operation activities the commitments we undertake pursuant to the convention .

Perhaps most important, however, is the onus the convention places on those who have caused the damage to assist in the clearance of cluster munitions remnants. They are strongly encouraged to provide as much assistance as possible, including financial and material aid, to the affected country. This ensures that countries that engage in the use of these weapons will no longer be able to walk away from the indiscriminate damage they cause.

A number of Senators, particularly Senator Norris, indicated they would table amendments on Committee Stage, which is their right. However, a number of amendments were tabled on Committee Stage in the Dáil that sought to change what is meant, for the purposes of the Bill, by the terms "cluster munition" and "anti-personnel mines". These changes would have the effect of broadening the scope of the legislation by prohibiting the use of weapons that are not prohibited by the two conventions concerned. The Government has not accepted these amendments for a number of reasons.