I am particularly pleased to have been asked to
contribute to the first Annual Report of the International Observatory. The ban
of anti-personnel mines is indeed a cause defended by Governments and
non-governmental organisations alike. That shared concern has characterised the
entire negotiating process leading to the Ottawa Convention on the Prohibition
of Anti-Personnel Mines. At this stage, it is important to carry on in the same
direction and effectively implement the Convention with a view to achieving a
world-wide ban of anti-personnel landmines.
The co-operation between Governments and NGO's is again illustrated by the
timing of this publication. This Report sets out to give a first general review
of the global state of affairs even before the first Conference of the States
party to the Treaty takes place. It will then be supplemented by the comments of
the countries attending the Maputo Conference of the Party States next May and
by their declarations later in 1999. The Treaty actually stipulates that six
months after its entry into force, each Party State is to provide a review -
based on a model negotiated between the Party States - of the way in which the
Convention has been implemented on its territory. Consequently, the yearbook is
a first 'stock taking exercise'.
Belgium supports the action of the International Observatory, in which
non-governmental organisations use their knowledge of the situation on the
ground and their experience to stimulate the international community to go
further. In this, both Governments and non-governmental organisations obviously
have to maintain their specific character and preserve their own style and
autonomy.
For years now, I have been advocating a world-wide ban on anti-personnel
mines. These weapons cause a humanitarian catastrophe and continue to be harmful
years after a conflict has been ended. Mines are extremely easy to emplace, but
their clearance is very expensive and time consuming. Destroying mines costs
approximately 500 times more than manufacturing them.
Moreover, these devices often fundamentally hamper the normalisation process
in "transition" countries, in which a peace process has recently been put on
track. As a result, the agricultural sector, business and industry cannot
function properly. Furthermore, the fear and the sense of insecurity and
vulnerability caused by the presence of these mines have a devastating effect on
the social and economic fabric and paralyse the dynamics of local communities in
transition countries.
Anti-personnel mines have a deep impact on the daily life of the local
population. In many cases, they prevent local people from safely returning to
conflict zones and resume farming, which is a major source of economic
development and self-sufficiency. Those who continue to work and live in these
areas, despite a conflict going on, expose themselves as well as their children
every day to the risk of being maimed. If that happens, they depend for the rest
of their lives on a society only laboriously recovering after a stop has been
put to a conflict. In situations like these, where the poorest and most
vulnerable population groups such as children are the worst hit, the future of a
country is seriously jeopardized.
In his Agenda for Peace of June 1992, the then UN Secretary-General
Boutros-Ghali pointed out the large humanitarian and socio-economic problems
caused by anti-personnel mines. The International Conference on Demining, which
was held in Geneva in July 1995 and which I chaired, has stressed the need for
political commitment and for sufficient financial means and equipment in order
to tackle the problem effectively.
After this conference, the international community soon realised that the
only real answer to these humanitarian preoccupations was a total ban of such
devices. Belgium played a very active role in the international campaign to ban
anti-personnel mines on a global scale. Our country continued on an
international level what had already been achieved on the national level.
Belgium was in fact the first country in the world to proclaim a ban de jure, by
the Act of 9 March 1995 amended by the Act of 24 June 1996. With the exception
of a small quantity of anti-personnel mines, all stocks have been destroyed
since September 1997. The remainder will be used to train further Belgian
experts to be deployed – as and when necessary – in other countries
where mines are still a part of daily life.
In the context of this international campaign, Belgium has been active within
the central group of countries of the Ottawa-process. This group advocated the
conclusion of an international treaty. After the initial meeting in Ottawa, a
series of conferences were organised in various countries, in the running-up to
what is considered to be a genuine success, namely the signing of the Convention
on the Prohibition of Anti-Personnel Mines. In June 1997, my country hosted one
of these conferences. The Brussels Conference crystallised the necessary
political will to establish a legally binding instrument in the short term and
to organise a diplomatic conference which would start in Oslo in September 1997.
As a result, the Convention on the Prohibition of Anti-Personnel Mines was drawn
up; it was already open for signature on 3 and 4 December of that same year.
Belgium signed the Convention on 3 December 1997 and deposited its instruments
of ratification with the UN Secretariat in New York on 4 September 1998. Our
country has thus been among the 40 first ratifying countries, the number
required for the entry into force of the Convention.
I am therefore very pleased to note that the year 1999 is already marked by
two major events, namely the entry into force of the Convention on 1 March 1999
and the convening by the UN Secretary-General of the first Party States
Conference, in Maputo from 3 to 7 May. We hope that these events will have a
stimulating effect on universalising the Convention. Its global adherence is an
objective which I regularly refer to, as does my Ministry, in our contacts with
colleagues from other countries.
However, universalization is not the only goal. The implementation of the
Convention by those countries which already have acceded, is another necessary
task. It has two aspects: on the one hand, the implementation of the specific
provisions of the Convention regarding the national territory and on the other
hand, the assistance to other countries, ranging from traditional demining and
technical training programmes, to assistance to victims and educational
programmes to make the population aware of the problem and teach them how to
deal with mines. As I already mentioned before, some countries might have
difficulties removing all mines from their territory, especially when they have
just come out of a conflict. The Convention stipulates that, in that case, such
a country can rely on assistance from other countries which are in a position to
provide it. In this respect, it must be stressed that the responsibility for
demining lies primarily with the infected country. That country has to develop,
with international support if necessary, an autonomous local demining capacity.
However, all international assistance has to be aimed at enabling this country
to comply with the Ottawa Convention on a totally autonomous basis and as soon
as possible.
Belgium has committed itself to achieving this aim and argued during the
negotiations of the Ottawa Convention for adding a provision on humanitarian
assistance. Both in 1997 and in 1998, our country made available an amount of
more than BEF 100 million on top of its normal contribution to the EU common
action. For 1999 too, funds have already been allocated, e.g. in favour of the
United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund. As regards assistance, our country is
guided in the first place by the Ottawa Convention, the Common Action, the EU
Resolution and the UN policy. Belgium takes up the position that a country which
asks for assistance actually subscribes to the Convention. As far as specific
mine clearance is concerned, there is indeed no point in starting demining
activities which are slow, dangerous and expensive, if mines are emplaced more
quickly than they are cleared. In the case of humanitarian emergency situations,
assistance to mine victims and mine awareness programmes, this principle can be
departed from.
Belgium has built up an expertise in the area of demining and will continue
to develop it. To that end, it also supports initiatives in the area of
technical research and development with a view to speeding up demining
activities. As you know, the Ottawa Convention stipulated a period of up to ten
years as the term in which the ban has to be implemented. This is obviously not
an absolute term and an extension may be granted to countries facing major
problems on their territory. At this moment however, our main concern has to be
to find a solution according to the schedule set by the Ottawa Convention and we
should not let anything deter us.
Signed: Mr. Erik Derycke, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Belgium