Every day, every hour, ongoing and past military offensives have devastating effects on the lives of innocent civilians. Even when countries are at peace,' their populations are terrorized by the aftereffects of wars that leave their land and communities war-torn and littered with weapons.  As the world grows increasingly militarized, conflicts are prolonged and millions remain trapped in poverty and starvation.  Funding for health and education programs that would directly advance gender equality is sidelined to amass stockpiles of deadly weapons. 

Action can be taken to prevent further unnecessary tragedies.  In cooperation with civil society groups, non-government organizations, activists, and other concerned citizens, we call on world leaders and governing bodies to sign and uphold weapons bans from illegally-traded small arms to nuclear weapons of mass destruction.

 
Immediately following the end of World War II, Japan legislated Article 9 - renouncing war and the maintenance of war potential. Article 9 is an active response to preventing further atrocities. It is Japan's pledge to the people of Asia, the Pacific, and the world, to never again repeat the mistakes it made during World War II. The pacifist principles set out in Article 9 disallow Japan from arms export, as well as prohibit the possession, production, and introduction of nuclear arms.

THE MINE BAN TREATY

In 1997, after years of international civil society mobilization and government lobbying, the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), led by Jody Williams, achieved its goal of an international treaty banning antipersonnel landmines.

For their work to rid the world of landmines, the ICBL and Jody Williams were awarded the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize.

 
What Are Cluster Munitions?

Like landmines, cluster munitions are weapons that claim victims indiscriminately during times of war and peace. These weapons have inhumane consequences for innocent civilians decades after conflicts end. Cluster munitions, or cluster bombs, are canister-like weapons that are dropped from planes and open in mid-air to scatter smaller submunitions or bomblets to the ground below. Each canister can drop anywhere from a dozen to 200 bomblets over an area the size of 2-3 football fields.

The mechanical function of cluster munitions is similar to antipersonnel landmines. They have trigger devices that when disturbed, trigger a deadly explosion. Unlike mines, the bomblets are designed to explode on impact, rather than being triggered by a victim stepping on the munition. However, cluster munitions' scariest threat is that they are extremely unreliable weapons. Twenty-five percent of cluster submunitions are estimated to fail to explode on impact. This means the bomblets are left lying on the ground and with the slightest disturbance, like a child's touch or even a gust of wind, explode to kill or maim their victim.

What is the Problem?

• Roughly half a million men, women, and children are killed by armed violence every year - that is one person every minute.

• There are more than 630 million small arms (handguns and firearms) and light weapons in the world today, and every year eight million more are produced.

The Nobel Women's Initiative supports the efforts of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN): a new campaign that focuses on the roots of the nuclear weapons problem. Their mission is to bring together health professionals, mayors, lawyers, parliamentarians and environmental and human rights advocates to work together to build a truly global, coordinated nuclear disarmament network with the aim of a treaty to ban the development, possession, and use of nuclear weapons. 

More content for our Nuclear Weapons page is coming soon! Please check back soon.