A cluster bomb, or cluster munition, is a weapon containing multiple explosive submuni­tions. When the canister opens these small bombs are spread over a wide area. Many fail to explode on impact, and remain a lethal danger to anyone coming near.

They are an inher­ently inac­curate and unpre­dict­able legacy weapon which endangers civilians for decades and deprive families and communities of productive land.

The Convention on Cluster Munitions opened for signature in Oslo in 2008 and entered into force in August 2010. The Convention has 100 State Parties and 19 signatures, for a total of 119 countries joining the treaty. Australia has now ratified the Convention, although gaps regarding investment in companies that produce cluster munitions still remain in our domestic legislation.

SafeGround’s research and advocacy actively contributes to the universalisation of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, and we continue to monitor treaty status around the world.