From Africa Recovery, Vol.12#4 (April 1999), page 13

Impetus towards a mine-free world

First land mine convention meeting scheduled for Maputo in May

By Jullyette Ukabiala

Following the entry into force of the Anti-Personnel Mine (APM) Convention in March this year, the signatories are set for their first meeting in Mozambique. Scheduled for 7-11 May in Maputo, the meeting will explore a workable plan for implementing the Convention's world-wide ban on the production and use of land mines.

Mozambican diplomat and one of the organizers of the meeting, Mr. Fernando Chomar, told Africa Recovery that some 650 people are expected to attend the meeting. They will comprise mainly delegates from the 133 countries that have so far signed the Convention, international and regional organizations, and specialized UN agencies. He said the meeting is expected to produce a "Maputo Declaration" reflecting the commitment of the signatories to the Convention.

Mr. Chomar said his country was considered ideal for hosting the meeting because it is one of the most affected by land mines. He adds that it was also considered appropriate to meet "on African soil," because the land mine scourge is a matter of grave concern for all Africans.

The impact on Africa

The UN estimates that there are some 110 mn land mines scattered in 70 countries. Of those, about 44.8 mn are buried in 11 African countries, and by far the worst affected are Angola, Egypt and Mozambique (see table). The mines in Angola and Mozambique are among the legacies of the bitter civil war fought in both countries, which ended in Mozambique in 1992 and has recurred in Angola. The bulk of those in Egypt were laid during the Second World War, with others laid during the Arab-Israeli wars that took place between 1948 and 1973.

In conflicts, APMs are mostly deployed by being buried in the ground, and are detonated when stepped upon or moved in any way. They are designed to kill or disable their victims permanently, often by shattering one or both limbs beyond repair. The International Committee of the Red Cross states that there are some 250,000 land mine amputees in the world, comprising mostly civilians, including children. The most severe impact in Africa has been on Angola, which has about 23,000 amputees (one out of every 470 people) and Mozambique, where land mines have claimed over 10,000 lives. Casualties are still mounting, mainly because many mined areas are unmarked and the mines remain active for many decades.

The economic impact is such that food production in affected Angolan cities has been reduced by more than 25 per cent, yet Angola has had to keep a relatively low profile regarding the Convention, says Mr. Arcanjo Maria Do Nascimento, an Angolan diplomat at the United Nations. "Mozambique has peace and can concentrate on the issue more actively. Right now, we have war going on," he notes. Mr. Do Nascimento points out that Angola has done a lot of mine clearing, working with UN teams and concerned non-governmental organizations (NGOs). "Following renewed fighting, however, the process is now hampered," he told Africa Recovery. He said his country would be sending a "high-powered" delegation to the Maputo meeting, to explore how participants could increase support for land mine victims, in such areas as rehabilitation, medical supplies and special education.

Funding for demining is critical due to the astronomical costs involved, forcing it to become a humanitarian emergency on the international agenda. Contributions to the Voluntary Trust Fund for assistance in mine clearance stood at $49.5 mn in February 1999. The UN states, however, that approximately $33 bn would be needed to rid the world of land mines. Once the Convention is being implemented, more contributions are likely, says Mr. Chomar.

Both he and Mr. Do Nascimento acknowledge that support from African states has mainly come from South Africa, as the great majority of the others lack the financial capacity to assist Angolan and Mozambican demining programmes. South Africa's commitment reflects its own direct experience of the land mine problem (although on a relatively modest scale), due to its many decades of internal conflict, as well as its involvement in the Angolan and Mozambican conflicts. Africa Watch, the human rights NGO, states that many of the mines laid in both countries came from South Africa.

South Africa and Egypt are Africa's major producers and exporters of land mines. After initial reluctance to support the global anti-land mine movement, South Africa made a dramatic shift in 1996 and announced a permanent ban on mines, along with the decision to destroy its stockpile.

The adoption of the convention in September 1997 was the culmination of increasing international concern over the humanitarian crisis caused by land mines. Key provisions of the Convention include a comprehensive ban on all anti-personnel mines; destruction of stockpiled mines within four years; removal and destruction of mines already in the ground within 10 years; and encouragement of mine-clearing assistance from capable countries, governmental organizations and NGOs.

Angola and Mozambique see the coming into effect of the Convention as a momentous development. "It is bound to further raise international awareness about the terrible impact of land mines," says Mr. Do Nascimento. Similarly, Mr. Chomar notes, "the Convention will provide the impetus towards a mine-free world." Egypt is relatively less sanguine. Although it pledges support for international demining and related humanitarian objectives, it regrets that the Convention did not specify that the primary responsibility for demining affected countries lay with those that planted the mines in the first place.

[Back to index] [To Volume12#4 -- full graphics]

Material from this article may be freely reproduced, with attribution to "Africa Recovery, United Nations".
We would appreciate a copy of the reproduction.

Africa Recovery
Room S-931
United Nations
New York, NY 10017 USA

Tel: (212) 963-6857
Fax: (212) 963-4556
Email: africa_recovery@un.org

Website: www.africarecovery.org
Contact us by email: africa_recovery@un.org