Draft UN report calls for the banning of UAVs

A draft UNHRC report called on Thursday for a resolution banning the production, transportation and use unmanned aircraft vehicles (UAV) across the entire world because they breach international law, German News Agency (DPA) said.

According to the draft report, the use of lethal robots or UAVs has raised “wide-scale fears about protecting people’s lives in times of war and peace.”

The language of the report clearly reflected its scepticism about the possibility of UAVs being pre-programmed to fulfil the obligations of international humanitarian law and human rights.

“In addition, DPA reported, “using them might not be acceptable as there is no appropriate law for holding users legally accountable.”

The report called for all member states “to announce a national suspension for at least the testing, producing, assembling, owning and using of the UAVs” until an internationally agreed upon framework regarding the future of such aircrafts can be put in place.

The human rights rapporteur of the UNHRC prepared the report following strong protests from several member countries, including Pakistan. They said that UAVs kill people indiscriminately and breach national sovereignty and international law.

Aircrafts of this kind are mostly used by the USA in what it claims is an international campaign against terror. Therefore, the report clearly called for the USA to issue orders that organise the use and production of UAVs.