Global Use of Landmines Falls, While U.S. Ponders New Production.
November 23, 2005

Global use of antipersonnel mines and the number of reported mine casualties have fallen in 2005, according to the Landmine Monitor Report 2005 ­ the seventh annual report by the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL). Go to www.icbl.org/lm/2005 to read the report.

“Landmine Monitor 2005: Toward a Mine Free World” also reports an increase in government efforts to protect innocent civilians and clear landmines. International funding for mine action increased to $399 million in 2004, and 135 square kilometers of mine-affected land were cleared. The report also notes “the virtual cessation of the global trade in antipersonnel mines”

Despite these promising developments, many challenges remain.

Landmines and other unexploded remnants of war continue to plague millions of people in 84 countries. The Landmine Monitor estimates that “there are between 15,000 and 20,000 new landmine and [unexploded ordinance] casualties each year” both in the 58 countries with reported landmine related deaths, and in those countries where deaths are not reported. In the past year, 4 more countries have joined the treaty, bringing the total number of parties to one hundred and forty seven. But “[f]orty countries remain outside the treaty,” including the United States.

Go to www.icbl.org/lm/2005/usa to read the Landmine Monitor chapter on the U.S.

The Landmine Monitor release is timed to coincide with the 6th Meeting of State Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty. From November 28-December 2, 2005, some six hundred delegates representing over 100 countries and dozens of international and non-governmental organizations will meet in Zagreb, Croatia to assess the current state of the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty in order to ensure that the scourge of antipersonnel mines is finally overcome. The U.S. is not a party to the historic treaty and will not send a delegation to the conference (although other non-state parties will be represented).

Write Your Senators

Given the added attention on the landmine issue caused by the release of the Landmine Monitor and the convening of the 6th Meeting of State Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty, now is a good time to contact your Senators. Tell them

1. You support the goals of the Mine Ban Treaty and that the U.S. should engage in global discussions on the landmine issue.
2. Express your concern about reports that the Bush administration is making plans to begin production of a new generation of antipersonnel mines. Tell them that this initiative would erase many of the positive steps the United States has taken in the past toward banning antipersonnel mines. At a time when the world community is dedicating itself to remove the threat posed by landmines, the U.S. must not begin new production of this indiscriminate weapon. For more information, go to www.banminesusa.org

To see a sample letter to the Senate go to: http://capwiz.com/fconl/issues/alert/?alertid=8012591

For addition background on new antipersonnel mine systems see Human Rights Watch’s report “Back in Business: U.S. landmine production and exports.” http://hrw.org/backgrounder/arms/arms0805/