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U.S. Campaign to Ban
Landmines Email Newsletter In this edition. . .
Alert: Honor Dec. 3 Mine Ban Treaty Anniversary by Speaking Up December 3, 2003 marks the 6th anniversary of the opening for signature
of the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty. Please honor this date, and more importantly
the victims and future victims of landmines, by speaking out against
the policy of the US government, which retains the right to use
this indiscriminate weapon. See www.banminesusa.org
and www.icbl.org/news/2003/427.php Now 150 Governments Part of Mine Ban Treaty There are now 150 governments that have signed or acceded to the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty –more than three quarters of the world’s nations. The latest accessions --countries that had never signed the treaty-- are Turkey (September 25), Serbia and Montenegro (September 18), Belarus (September 3) and Timor Leste (East Timor) (May 7). The latest ratifications --countries that had previously signed the treaty, but were not yet full state parties-- are Burundi (October 22), Sudan (October 13), Greece (September 5), Guyana (August 5) and Lithuania (May 12). Congratulations to these governments and to their people! There are currently 141 parties to the treaty, which means that nine countries that have signed the accord have not yet ratified it. Forty-four governments, including that of the United States, are not part of the treaty at all. We are pleased to announce that Mary Wareham of Human Rights Watch is the new Chair of the US Campaign to Ban Landmines (USCBL). Over the past several years Wareham has coordinated and edited the Landmine Monitor, an annual report that documents the landmine problems, policies, and efforts in virtually every country in the world. In the mid 1990s, Wareham came to the United States from her native New Zealand and became the Coordinator of the US Campaign to Ban Landmines. Since then, she has continued her seemingly tireless anti-landmine efforts with both the International and US Campaigns to Ban Landmines. We would like to thank and recognize the Reverend Mark Brown from the Evangelical Church in America (ELCA) who served as the Chair of the USCBL from early 2001 until recently. The ELCA continues to serve on the USCBL Steering Committee, as do 14 other organizations. Gina Coplon-Newfield continues as the Coordinator of the USCBL, which is based in Boston at Physicians for Human Rights. Vermont Event to Raise Funds for Landmine Victim Assistance On November 29th master of the monologue and the genius behind the classic movie "Swimming to Cambodia,” Spalding Gray will performing in Dorset, VT at the Dorset Playhouse. Mr. Gray's performance is a benefit appearance for Clear Path International. Clear Path works to assist landmine survivors in Vietnam, Cambodia and on the Thai-Burma border. More information on the event, and online ticket sales, can be found here: www.clearpathinternational.org/spaldinggray.php. Michigan Native Dies from Mine in Iraq Detroit, Michigan Brent McJennett wanted to re-enlist when it became clear the United States would invade Iraq. His wife, Dawn, talked him out of it. The 15-year Army serviceman already had served in the 1st Armored Division in Desert Storm, 12 years earlier. So instead, McJennett, 40, signed on to help with reconstruction efforts by working for a company to set up communication systems in Iraq. McJennett, who graduated from East Detroit High School in 1981, died Monday near Tikrit when his vehicle ran over a land mine, his mother, Donna McJennett said Tuesday. "He always loved the military," his mother said. McJennett's family began assembling in Clinton Township, northeast of Detroit, on Tuesday to await the return of his body and the funeral services. "He was a wonderful man," said Kim Sutton, the mother of McJennett's former wife. "He was a good father and friend." McJennett, who lived in Copperas Cove, Texas, went to Iraq earlier this year after responding to an advertisement seeking former soldiers with communications technology experience. McJennett fit the bill, having trained in communications in the Army, then working for MCI and Dell Inc. "He said it could advance his career," she said. "He
was so proud. He got on the Internet to tell all his friends that
he was going." "His wife asked him to quit the job and come home," his mother said. Copyright (c) 2003 Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. Two Schoolgirls Injured in Landmine Explosion in Chechnya GROZNY, Chechnya On November 19th, two schoolgirls, aged 14 and 15, received fragmentation wounds in a land mine explosion in Tsentralnaya street in the village of Mekhkety in Vedenskiy District, the spokesman for the regional operational headquarters for the antiterrorist operation in the North Caucasus, Ilya Shabalkin, told ITAR-TASS today. The victims - sisters Zareta and Taita Takhidzhaiyev - were taken to hospital. Doctors say that there is no danger to their lives. The police have detained a 16-year-old local resident suspected of having committed the crime. He admitted that two more rebels from Supyan Abdullayev's gang had been involved in planting and blowing up the land mine. The gang leader's idea was that a random explosion in the village would make its residents believe that the village had been hit by a projectile fired by the federal troops. The gunmen expected that the incident would provoke an unsanctioned rally and would destabilize the situation in the district. A criminal investigation into the incident has been launched. A search for members of the gang is under way. Over the last 10 days five civilians have been injured in land mine explosions in Chechnya. For more information about the US Campaign to Ban Landmines or to donate on-line, please see our website at www.banminesusa.org U.S. Campaign to Ban Landmines To stop receiving these updates and action alerts, please write to landmines@fcnl.org from the email address that receives the newsletter and ask us to take you off the list. |
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