VIENTIANE, Laos, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- Improving the lives of the victims of cluster munitions is the next step in stigmatizing the weapons, ICRC delegates said during a convention in Laos.
The Convention on Cluster Munitions, enacted in August, bans the use, production and transfer of cluster munitions. Parties to the convention gathered Tuesday in Laos for the first formal meeting on the ban.
Christine Beerli, a vice president at the International Committee of the Red Cross, said Laos suffered more than any other nation from the use of cluster bombs.
"We are here today to ensure that the lives of communities, victims and survivors are improved through risk reduction, the clearance of contaminated land, medical care, rehabilitation, psycho-social support and economic opportunities," she said in a statement.
As of Tuesday, 108 nations had signed the convention, with 46 also ratifying the ban.
A report issued last week by the Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor found that of the more than 16,500 casualties linked to cluster munitions globally, most were from unspent bombs.
The ICRC said there are more than 800 million cluster bomblets scattered over the Laotian countryside, leading to 300 casualties per year on average.
