Mr. Speaker, I thank my New Democrat colleague for her excellent question. The reason the NDP is so insistent that clause 11 be removed is that we believe Canada must not be complicit in the handling and transportation of cluster munitions.
Sometimes cluster munitions do not explode and they become anti-personnel mines. A number of members of the Canadian Forces have been victims of them. To give an indication of the extent of the damage caused by cluster munitions, I need only note that 98% of all injuries associated with cluster munitions are suffered by civilians.
These cluster munitions are not exploding in Canada; they are exploding in countries where there are conflicts, and the civilian population should not be paying the price. All of the countries that have not ratified the convention, including the United States, should ratify it so that we can live in a better world where there are fewer lives lost.