University of Minnesota

Final Act of the United Nations Conference on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May be Deemed to be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects, 19 I.L.M. 1523, Oct. 10 1980.


[The Human Rights Library wishes to express its gratitude to the Institute Henry Dunant for its contribution of this document.]

The United Nations Conference on Prohibitions or Restrictions of Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May be Deemed to be Excessively Injurious or to have Indiscriminate Effects, convened on the basis of United Nations General Assembly resolutions 32/152 of 19 December 1977, 33/70 of 28 September 1978 and 34/82 of 11 December 1979, met at the Palais des Nations in Geneva from 10 to 28 September 1979 and from 15 September to 10 October 1980.

Eighty-five States participated in the work of the Conference, 82 at the 1979 session, 76 at the 1980 session.

On 10 October 1980, the Conference adopted the following instruments:

1. Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May be Deemed to be Excessively Injurious or to have Indiscriminate Effects (Appendix A).

2. Protocol on Non-Detectable Fragments (Protocol I) (Appendix B).

3. Protocol on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Mines, Booby-Traps and Other Devices (Protocol II) (Appendix C).

4. Protocol on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Incendiary Weapons (Protocol III) (Appendix D)

In addition, the Conference at its 1979 session adopted the following resolution: Resolution on Small-Calibre Weapon Systems (Appendix E). The texts of the above-mentioned instruments and resolution are appended to this Final Act.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, signed in Geneva, this tenth day of October 1980.

(Here follow signatures of the President and Executive Secretary of the Conference.)