AFRICA: Landmine conference opens in Maputo

Delegates attending the first meeting of signatories of the 1997 Ottawa Landmine Ban Treaty which opened in Maputo, Mozambique, on Monday, were told that three African countries which had put their signatures to the treaty had failed to comply with its terms. Jody Williams, co-recipient of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize, said the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) was "particularly appalled at the disregard for their international commitments by the governments of treaty signatories Angola, Guinea-Bissau and Senegal." Williams, who gave no details of the alleged "disregard" by the three nations, added: "Despite these instances of continued use, overall we have seen a distinct decrease in use, production, transfer and stockpiling of anti-personnel mines globally as the norm established by the ban treaty begins to take effect." An ICBL report released at the meeting said Africa remained the world’s most affected landmine continent, and it listed Angola, Mozambique, Somalia, Sudan, Eritrea and Ethiopia as among the countries at the top of the list. It added that of  48 countries in Africa, 40 had so far signed the treaty, leaving Democratic Republic of Congo, the Comoros Islands, Liberia, the Central African Republic, Nigeria, Eritrea, Egypt, Libya and Morocco as the only non-signatories. It said an estimated 70,000 people have been killed or injured in the past 15 years in Sudan and that up to 2 million mines had been laid. "In the case of Angola and Mozambique, landmine victims also run into the thousands," it added. The ICBL report also said that to date, an estimated US $116 million had been spent on de-mining in Mozambique, possibly more than any other country except Afghanistan. Earlier this year, the Mozambique government announced that it had destroyed an estimated 60,000 mines since the start of its clearance programme in 1993. The de-mining process in Angola was interrupted by the resurgence of the war late last year. Until then, it said an estimated at US $12 million had been spent on de-mining in Angola. The ICBL said there were currently no producers or exporters of anti-personnel mines in Africa, but it cautioned that many of the mines still being used were from old stocks "indicating why the destruction of stockpiles is such an urgent priority". It added that stockpiles had already been destroyed in Mali and South Africa. South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe reported that they had stopped mine production. By 31 March this year a total of 135 countries had signed the treaty, with 77 countries ratifying it. The treaty bans the use, stockpile, production, and transfer of anti-personnel mines. It became binding under international law on 1 March this year, six months after the 40th ratification by Burkina Faso. Three of the world's most powerful nations, the United States, Russia and China have not signed the treaty.